If You're Not The One
by TCD
Summary: Compilation of fluffy one shots written from EPOV. Edward meets Bella the day before she moves away to college. Find out what happens when he realizes he loves her and tries to win her over. Lots of fluff. EPOV. AU. Rated T.
1. Chapter 1: If You're Not The One

**A/N:** Hi there, it's been way too long since I've written anything I know and I'm sorry ;) I've been extremely busy and quite frankly a bit uninspired lately. But I'm back now :P I came up with this story because I loved writing **I've Had the Time of My Life** so much. The idea for this story is the same, every chapter is inspired by a different song. But as **I've Had the Time of My Life** was from Bella's point of view, this one will be from Edward's, mostly because I didn't want to repeat myself too much and because I love being inside our beloved Edward's head :P I started this particular story after a couple of lines of "If you're not the one" by Daniel Bedingfield had been stuck in my head for like a month or something and I finally decided to listen to the rest of the song :P After I had heard it the idea for the story began to form in my head and what you can read now is the first chapter of this compilation of fluffy one shots. I'll upload a new chapter every day (if I can). I hope you all enjoy it and as always, please let me know what you think, it means the world to me! :)

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**If You're Not The One**

"Good morning Edward," Alice greeted me happily like she did almost every morning.

"Morning Alice," I replied, not as enthusiastic as I could sometimes do.

I was a bit worn out by the long night I had had. The rest of the family had wanted to go hunting but I hadn't felt the desire to, I had been looking forward to an evening alone with my books. However, at the last minute Rosalie and Emmett had decided to stay home as well, saying they needed some 'bonding time'. Like the two of them hadn't been bonding enough ever since they met… But instead of granting me my privacy by leaving the house to enjoy their nightly activities, they also decided to stay indoors. Instead of the evening free of everyone's thoughts, I had been treated to front row seats at yet another one of Emmett and Rose's love making episodes. I had to work particularly hard to block out the images coming from them since they weren't even trying to keep things quiet.

"I'm sorry you're night got spoiled, I wish I could've warned you sooner but it was a rash decision on their parts," Alice explained apologetically.

"It's not your fault, I don't blame you," I said softly before smiling at my favorite sister. "Emmett on the other hand," I added the moment Emmett came down the stairs.

"Sorry bro," he said, unashamed and insincerely.

"Yeah right," I muttered a little irritated.

Emmett stared at me for a moment, a little taken aback by my grumpy mood, he was used to a lot from me of course and all my family members knew how hard my gift could be on me whenever they were having one of their adventures but the look of disappointment was more than evident on my face as I once again hadn't been able to read in peace on my sofa like I'd planned and Emmett recognized that it was different this time.

"Look, I'm really sorry, you know how Rose and I can get," he said a little more seriously this time.

"It's okay Emmett, it's easy to let my frustration out on you but I'm happy that you and Rose have each other," I said more kindly.

"Finally desiring a mate of your own then?" Emmett asked jokingly, knowing he was safe from my fury for now and never passing up the opportunity to tease me about my lack of a mate.

"As you know, I'm perfectly happy with myself, my big brother on the other hand is a completely different matter," I shot back at him easily.

Emmett wasn't one to back down from an argument but Alice intervened.

"Knock it off," she said earnestly. "Edward, why don't you and I go scan the surroundings for a little bit, who knows, there might be some nice shops in this little town by now," Alice suggested, trying to hide most of her excitement but not quite managing.

The family had moved back to Forks a few days ago, we had lived here before but that was a long time ago, much had changed. Carlisle would start his first day at work today, he was excited to work at a different hospital again, hoping he would be able to make this hospital a better one as well before we had to move on again.

"Maybe afterwards we can check to see how Carlisle is doing at his new job?" I suggested, eager to get out of the house.

I loved spending time with Alice and even though I wasn't a big fan of shopping, I wouldn't quickly pass up an opportunity to be with just Alice and me, she had been my best friend for so long already and it had been easy to like the little pixie from the start. I had yet to meet someone who wasn't immediately drawn in by her enthusiasm and kindheartedness. Or at least, mostly vampires felt that way, humans shied away from us as much as they could. Which was the way we preferred it as well.

"I can't wait to show you the hospital Edward, it's great and I'm sure you'll enjoy being there as well," Carlisle chimed as he approached Alice and me.

Carlisle had always wanted me to go into working at a hospital as well. My control was almost as good as his was, _almost_. But I hadn't had the courage to actually test the theory of how strong my hold over my own desires was with lots of human blood being exposed. I had gone to medical school before and in theory I knew everything but practice was a wholly different situation with too much at risk, a human life, maybe more, and most of all exposure of our kind, not to mention the disappointment my father would feel.

"Carlisle…" I started but he interrupted me again.

"I know Edward, but the only way you'll ever be able to take up a position in a hospital like you've told me you desired so many times is to actually _try_," he argued strongly.

"You have too much faith in me Carlisle," I said sadly.

"And you don't have enough faith in yourself Edward," he countered. "But for now I guess I could be content with just showing you two around my new second home," he added in order to keep the argument from going any further.

We had been over this and over this, neither Carlisle nor I was going to give in, we had completely different views on the matter. His was that if he could handle it, so could I. Mine was that I would be like a loose cannon set free on unsuspecting innocents.

Even though Carlisle had ended the arguments with his words, his mind kept showing me pictures of him proudly putting his arms around me, both of us in scrubs. He looked at Alice for support but she stubbornly shook her head.

"You know better than that Carlisle, I can only see Edward as a doctor when he makes the decision to actually give it a try. Although that doesn't mean I don't believe that he can do it! I have all the faith in the world in his abilities to refrain from wreaking havoc on the hospital. But maybe you should just give it a try Edward, just for the fun of it, at least if you kill everyone in sight you'll never have to go over this argument with Carlisle again," she concluded teasingly.

"Hmmm I'll think about that," I played along, for once ignoring the fact that people in this family just seemed to automatically put too much faith in me.

"Well, I have to get to work, I'll see you later then," Carlisle said as he was walking over to Esme to give her a kiss before leaving.

"Bye," Alice and I said in unison.

Not much later Alice and I were driving through Forks, in search of something interesting.

"There are no boutiques here!" Alice exclaimed horrified.

"I guess you'll just have to make trips to Seattle and Port Angeles whenever you're in need of new clothes, that's too bad," I teased my sister.

"Well that sucks!" Alice continued her little tantrum.

But I had to admit that Forks wasn't much of an interesting place to be, we drove passed the police station and the high school and somehow it felt like that was all there was to see of this town.

The afternoon with Alice had been a lot of fun. Next to my father, Alice had been my best companion. She always knew just how to cheer me up when I was in need and with her I didn't need my gift to know what she was thinking. We were much alike in many ways but in even more ways we were worlds apart. It wasn't too often that the two of us could spend much time alone together. Unless Jasper was trying to get out of going to a movie or going shopping, then I could step in and spend time with his wife.

Many husbands could be jealous of how close Alice and I actually were but Jasper exactly knew our feelings, better than anyone else could, and he knew that there was nothing but sibling love between the two of us. So Jasper never made a fuss when Alice and I wanted to go somewhere with just the two of us and he never insisted on being let into a conversation Alice and I were having in secret. He knew that was just the way we were and I loved him for his acceptance.

"What are you smiling about?" Alice asked while we were on our way to the hospital to see Carlisle.

"Just thinking how lucky I am to have you as a sister and Jasper as a brother," I told her truthfully.

Alice replied with a sweet smile and a small squeeze of my hand.

We arrived at the hospital not much later and I could hear Carlisle's thoughts before we came into sight. _Ah there you are, I was beginning to think you were going to stand me up._ Carlisle directed at me and I could see in his mind that he was smiling.

We entered the hospital and Carlisle was waiting for us at the reception area. Alice greeted Carlisle with a firm hug and I just smiled at my father in acknowledgment.

"Well, there you are finally," he said teasingly.

"I didn't think such an important doctor like you would actually have time to wait impatiently for his children to show up so he can show them around," Alice teased right back.

Carlisle ruffled her hair in response before showing us to his office.

I had seen Carlisle at his work before but for some reason he looked more at peace here than he had done in the previous hospitals he had worked at.

"There's just something about a small town hospital that makes me glad to be a doctor," Carlisle answered my surprise as if he was the mindreader of the two of us.

"You seem completely in your element here," I said proudly.

"I am, even though it has only been one day, I know I'm going to have a lot of fun here. I'm going to be able to do the work I love doing and the people here are just all a little nicer than they usually are in a big town. Everyone knows each other, and even though that means less time for us to be spend here, I'm always happy to work in an environment like this," my father explained.

A nurse entered the room and I could see her eyeing Carlisle appreciatively, then she noticed Carlisle had company and blushed heavily. Her eyes lingered on me for a moment and I was surprised to find that her thoughts weren't the usual lust filled thoughts other nurses had had when Alice and I had entered the hospital. Surely they had all been convinced that Alice and I had been a couple, since we were both too beautiful for words according to them but that didn't keep them from fantasizing about me, or both Alice and me for that matter.

This nurse was different however, she acknowledged our beauty but it wasn't jealousy towards Alice or lust towards me. She was just surprised at how much we actually looked like Carlisle although we were supposed to be his adoptive children. Other than that her thoughts mostly flickered towards her fiancé. I couldn't help but smile at her and she smiled back shyly.

"Sorry doctor Cullen, I didn't realize you had visitors," she muttered apologetically. "I just came to bring you the dossiers you had asked for earlier," she continued before placing a pile of paperwork on my father's desk.

"Amy, how many times do I have to tell to call me Carlisle?" Carlisle said kindly.

"Sorry," the girl named Amy muttered.

"Let me introduce you to my children, this is my daughter Alice, and my son Edward. Guys, this is the head nurse of this department, Amy."

"Nice to meet you, Amy," both Alice and I said politely.

"Hi," she muttered shyly.

She quickly made her way back out of the office not long after the introductions.

"I like her," I told Carlisle.

"Yeah, she's a good nurse," Carlisle replied.

"She didn't once think about anything other than her fiancé, not like any of the other nurses when they are around you, maybe you should try to look a little less handsome," I teased my father.

Carlisle harrumphed but otherwise let my comment slide.

The tour of the hospital didn't take long because it wasn't a particularly large one to begin with. But it was nice to see my father in his element again. We had all taken a little time off from pretending to be normal, a few weeks just being ourselves at Isle Esme and I could tell that Carlisle had really missed his daily interaction with humans and even more he had missed helping those in need. It was nice to see him this happy again.

"Oh I realized I left something in your office Carlisle," Alice said as we were making our way out of the hospital. "I'll be right back," she told me as she started towards Carlisle's office.

"I have to get back to my paperwork anyways so why don't I walk with you right away," Carlisle offered. "See you at home Edward," he told me in goodbye.

"Bye, thanks for the tour," I told Carlisle. "I'll be in the car," I continued to Alice before walking in the direction of the exit again.

I was pondering over the possibility of becoming a doctor for real, wondering if I could actually be able to handle it. The idea got me excited and for a moment I didn't pay attention to my surroundings. At that exact time I felt something crash into me and my arms wrapped around it instinctively.

I looked down and I was surprised to find that I was holding a girl in my arms. I quickly released her after steadying her. It was strange that I hadn't heard her thoughts or registered her coming closer before.

"I'm sorry miss, I wasn't looking," I told her apologetically.

The doors of the hospital opened again and wind blew in like a soft sigh. The intensity of the scent that hit me was incredible. Unlike anything I had ever experienced before and I immediately locked down, holding my breath in the process.

Human blood would always be appealing to me but this particular scent was different, unlike any smell I had ever experienced before. I could feel my eyes immediately getting darker and my throat was burning beyond anything I had ever felt. It was extremely painful and I had to get away from this creature as quickly as I could.

"It was my fault, I'm clumsy like that," the girl answered bravely. She looked at me with a curious expression on her face. She was intrigued by me, like so many other females were, but there was something different, a curiosity that was mostly not present in other people. Many people liked to watch us from afar but when they got very close to us they would instinctively shy away. This girl just stood her ground, unafraid it seemed. Even though she was possibly in more danger from me than any other human in this place.

I couldn't speak for a moment, I was curious to know why she wasn't afraid. I tried to listen to her thoughts to know what she was thinking but for some reason I seemed unable to. I must have looked like a fool staring at this stranger the way I was because she started blushing more the longer I kept silent.

"I'm Bella Swan," she introduced herself to me, extending a hand towards me carefully but determinedly.

I wasn't sure whether or not it was safe for me to actually touch her, or to move in general, but I couldn't embarrass this girl any further either. So I decided to carefully shake her hand. I took a small breath to be able to introduce myself and even that small amount of air was enough to knock me senseless, her scent was just too powerful.

"Edward Cullen," I managed to choke out.

I was torn. On the one hand I wanted to run away as far as possible so I wouldn't endanger her any longer. On the other hand I wanted to know everything there was to know about her, and especially I wanted to know why I couldn't hear her thoughts. Of course I couldn't just ask her about it but I was hoping that some insight into this girl would provide me with enough information to figure it out on my own. I had never before encountered anyone who was immune to my gift.

"Nice to meet you Edward," the girl named Bella said shyly.

I decided to get a better handle on myself. I took slow, extremely conscious breaths, all the while monitoring the monster inside of me. It was working. The longer I was around her scent, the easier it was to block out my primal instincts.

"You're chief Swan's daughter aren't you?" I asked her politely. I had heard about the chief and I knew he had a daughter, even though we hadn't been here long, in a small town like this everyone knew everything about one another.

"That's right," she answered. "You must be new here?" Bella asked bravely.

"What makes you say so?" I replied.

Bella blushed at my directness. "Well, I've been living here for the past four years now and I've never seen you before," she explained.

"That's right, me and my family moved here a few days ago."

"Why?" she asked incredulously after which she started blushing immediately. It was enchanting to see her blush, that color made her look even more beautiful than she already was. "Sorry… I mean, why Forks of all places?" she continued.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, couldn't you have picked a sunnier place? This place is so green and rainy," she explained.

Her question intrigued me. "You don't like rain?" I asked.

"No, not at all, not anything wet or cold actually," she replied while shrugging.

"Why did you move to Forks then?" I challenged.

Bella explained her family's situation to me. Her mother had remarried and her husband was a minor league baseball player so they travelled a lot. Bella had decided to move in with her father in Forks to give her mother more time with her new husband. It was a very noble and selfless thing in my eyes, especially since she had such an aversion to the weather that signified Forks.

"Your mother is very lucky to have you," I said sincerely, earning another blush from her.

Bella asked me about my family and background and I told her the version we told everyone this time around. That my siblings and I were Esme and Carlisle's adoptive children and that we moved here for Carlisle's work. We had all finished high school and were now taking a year off before starting college to spend some time in Forks as a family. I told her I was also looking into getting my undergraduate degree through self study on the internet, although I wasn't quite decided on the subject just yet.

"I still can't believe you chose Forks of all places," Bella said incredulously.

"I don't mind the weather so much actually and the people seem very nice," I replied kindly.

We had chosen Forks mostly for the lack of sun most of the time and the privacy our property provided for us. But I had no intention of explaining that all to Bella.

"Why are you staying here when you don't like it then?" I asked curiously, hoping all the while she wouldn't think I was rude for asking such a bold question.

Bella blushed shortly before answering my question. "I'm not staying here, I've finished high school and I'm actually leaving for college tomorrow, I'm going to study in Seattle. I've found a little apartment downtown, close to the university, I'm going to study for my undergraduate degree in Biology. I only came here to pick up some of my records for the hospital in Seattle to have so that they know what to do with me when I visit them after one of my clumsy moments," she explained shyly.

For a short moment it felt like my heart was breaking. I couldn't quite understand why, since I hadn't known this girl that long but the thought of her leaving was excruciating to say the least.

"I thought you'd be in the car." I heard Alice's voice from behind me.

I turned around to face my sister and I could see the surprise in her eyes when she noticed the girl in front of me. Her eyes glazed over for a moment and I could follow the vision in her mind.

She saw Bella and me, walking hand in hand in my meadow, the meadow I had found the last time we were here and had claimed as my own little happy zone away from everyone, staring happily into each other's eyes. I tried to snap Alice out of her vision without drawing any suspicion from Bella. It couldn't be true anyways, Bella was human for crying out loud and she was moving away. It just wasn't possible.

I shook my head violently, too quickly for a human to catch.

_I don't control my visions Edward, but I for one would like to have another sister-in-law!_ Alice told me silently.

I again shook my head at her.

"Hi, I'm Alice, Edward's sister," Alice turned her attention to Bella.

"My name is Bella, nice to meet you," Bella replied a little taken aback by my sister's enthusiasm.

"I would love to get to know you better but Edward and I unfortunately have to go now, will I see you soon?" Alice asked innocently.

"I don't think so," Bella said sadly and I could see Alice's expression turn surprised and disappointed. "Not because I don't want to, but I'm moving away tomorrow," Bella added quickly.

"So soon already?" Alice asked with a pout on her face.

"Yes, college starts in a week and I have to prepare," Bella answered, seeming almost as sad as Alice was.

"That's too bad," Alice replied. "Well, it was very nice to meet you Bella, I'm sure you'll do great in college!" Alice said in goodbye, surprising both Bella and me by pulling Bella in for a hug as if the two had been friends for years.

"Nice to meet you too," Bella replied a little taken aback.

I could see that she didn't once flinch from Alice's touch and she wasn't even the slightest bit surprised by any of it. It was strange to see the effect Alice's enthusiasm and kindness could have on a person.

Alice already started to move in the direction of the car but I wasn't as willing to go as she had been. I just stood there, staring into the eyes of the most wonderful creature I had ever seen and I didn't even really know her. The burning in my throat had become less obvious as other emotions took charge. I was extremely sad that I wouldn't see this girl again and I was confused by Alice's vision, especially since Bella was going to move away and everything. It wasn't possible that I had finally found the perfect girl for me and she turned out to be human. I guess it was a good thing that she was moving away because I wouldn't be able to be close to her then and she wouldn't be in any danger from me.

For some reason Bella seemed just as reluctant to walk away as I was so we just stood there silently staring at each other for an immeasurable moment. Then Bella shyly cleared her throat and extended her hand towards me once more.

"It was very nice to meet you Edward," she said and I thought I detected a little sadness in her voice but that could've easily been my own disappointment at the way things were turning out.

"It was a pleasure to meet you too Bella," I replied sincerely while shaking her hand. A wave of electricity left me in shock for a moment. Our touch left a burning trail along my hand and I was wondering if Bella had felt the same thing. From the look of shock in her eyes I could tell she probably felt it too.

She blushed as she noticed my gaze and then started walking into the hospital, as she passed me she stopped for a moment and quickly planted a soft kiss on my cheek. The burning sensation of my throat was nothing compared to the electricity her kiss left on my cheek. I was on fire and I couldn't move for a moment as I heard Bella's footsteps retreat deeper into the hospital.

That evening I was behind my piano mindlessly playing some tunes that popped into my head. I hadn't even realized what song I had been playing until Alice came dancing down the stairs and started to sing along with my melody.

_I don't want to run away but I can't take it, I don't understand  
If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?  
Is there any way that I can stay in your arms? _

I snapped my head up at Alice when I heard the lyrics. The lyrics sounded so true, I wasn't made for Bella, she was human for crying out loud and she was moving away! But since I had met her this afternoon nothing else had been on my mind but her. I didn't understand what was going on with me.

Alice continued singing along to the song and another part of the song caught my attention.

_Cause I miss you, body and soul so strong that it takes my breath away  
And I breathe you into my heart and pray for the strength to stand today  
Cause I love you, whether it's wrong or right  
And through I can't be with you tonight  
You know my heart is by your side_

Was that really how I felt for her? Love? I had never felt anything like this before, it wasn't the kind of love I felt for my siblings, it was different. But I didn't even know her, how could I feel so strongly about her? It didn't make any sense at all.

"If that's really how you feel Edward then you should go get her!" Alice broke me out of my pondering.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, confused.

"I have never heard you play any songs like this one before, you were more one for the classics weren't you? So what has changed since the last time you played any song on the piano? You've met Bella today, and if my vision is close to the truth, you're meant to be with her. So why waste any time? You should fight for her!" Alice told me determinedly.

"I don't even know her Alice!" I cried out in despair. "And she's _human_!"

"There's a reason for everything Edward, and I'm pretty sure I got my vision because it's meant to come true so I'm going to help you realize my vision!" There was no arguing with Alice but I couldn't just invade this girl's life, especially not with the pull she had over the side of me I was trying all these years to suppress.

"I can't, I have to think," I said as I ran out of the house, to my meadow.

None of my family members had ever disturbed me in my meadow, they knew it was my sacred place. Today was different however. I heard him approaching as I was gazing at the sky, trying to sort out my thoughts.

"Jasper…" I started arguing but he cut me off.

"Alice said you might need some help sorting out your emotions, let me help you," Jasper offered and it didn't even sound like such a bad plan.

"Alright," I said hesitantly.

We just laid in the meadow staring at the darkening sky in silent for a moment. Neither of us willing to start the conversation. I could hear Jasper's thoughts, he was concerned for me but he was mostly reflecting on the feelings he was feeling coming off from me. And whenever he would feel a hint of despair from me he would help me with a wave of calm.

We didn't have to talk, Jasper knew like no other how to help me when I needed to sort out my emotions. The feedback from his gift was all I needed. We spent the entire night just sorting out my feelings and Jasper never once got impatient. It was almost sunrise when I realized what was going on.

I shot up like a missile and I realized Jasper had done the same, he was staring at me, with a triumphant smile around his lips. "I love her!" I exclaimed.

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**A/N:** So that was it for the first chapter, I hope you enjoyed it :) I'd love to hear your thoughts :) I'll respond to as much questions or comments as I can in the next chapters, like I always do :) The next chapter will be posted tomorrow :) Xxx


	2. Chapter 2: Airplanes

**A/N:** Hi there, I'm glad many of you have read and favored my story :) And thanks so much for the reviews **Shirley**, **Bria-lynn-cullen** and **Robsten Lover 223**. As promised I'm updating the second chapter today.

To Shirley: As always thanks for the awesome review :) I'm glad you're not dead by now, sorry it took me so long :( I'm glad you're so happy that I'm doing the lyrics thing again ;)

Well, on to the second chapter. Hope you enjoy it and as always let me know what your thoughts are :)

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**Airplanes**

A week had gone by since I had met Bella. It was incredible how big a part of my mind she occupied especially since I had realized that I actually loved her. But it was wrong and selfish of me to even want to be able to call her mine in anyway. So even though I could have gone to her house and I could have tried to stop her from moving away, I didn't. I wasn't even sure she would have wanted to come with me if I had tried but that wasn't an issue.

It was ridiculous that I would love her, since firstly I had only met her once and hardly knew anything about her and secondly because she was _human_ and I was clearly not, no matter how hard my feelings tried to tell me otherwise.

"It just isn't meant to be," I whispered softly to myself again. I had been arguing with myself for a week already and somehow even though I had never been in more doubt than I was right now, I had also never been more certain of anything in my entire existence.

"What's not meant to be?" Alice barged into my room, where I had locked myself in for a week now.

"Nothing," I muttered dismissively but she wasn't buying it.

"Jasper told me about your feelings Edward, and I had my vision and I'm sure it'll all turn out but you'll have to work for it, there's no way that you'll ever get her if you lock yourself in your room for the rest of eternity now is there?" she challenged.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" I answered harshly, not in the mood to negotiate.

"You know very well what I'm talking about Edward! And you don't know how much it's hurting Esme and Carlisle that you haven't told them what's on your mind and why you haven't been out of your room in a week. You haven't even fed!" Alice said the one thing she knew would get my attention. My parents.

I never wanted to hurt my parents in any way, they had been more loving than I had deserved and they had forgiven me for everything I had ever done to hurt them in the past. But I couldn't face the disappointment they would have and their judgment at my own weakness.

I knew I could trust Alice and Jasper more than anyone, they hadn't told the others about my problem because they believed it wasn't their story to share and I was grateful but it meant that I had to tell them myself, something I wasn't particularly looking forward to.

"We're all getting ready for a hunting trip right now, why don't you come along and then you can talk to Carlisle and Esme about your feelings, I'll be sure to keep Rosalie and Emmett away so you can have some privacy," Alice suggested.

"I don't know Alice," I whispered weakly.

"Well, I do, let's go!" she ordered, walking over to the couch I was currently occupying and dragging me onto my feet.

"Pushy little pixie," I muttered annoyed.

But Alice just smirked at me. "You know you love me, and you'll thank me for this later, I can tell," she added smugly.

Alice held my hand as we walked downstairs, in a sign of support. I couldn't tell her how much the action meant to me but she knew because she squeezed my hand gently before letting go to stand by Jasper's side.

_Hello son, are you joining us?_ Carlisle asked me silently.

I nodded my head shortly towards him and I saw a small smile of relief wash over his face. "I'm sorry about my behavior the last week," I said ashamed.

"That's alright," Carlisle replied. _Will we discuss it soon?_ He asked. I just nodded my head again.

"Let's go," Alice said eagerly. "Emmett, Rose, Jasper and I will take the Jeep, why don't you take Carlisle's Mercedes?" Alice suggested, thus arranging for some privacy with my parents.

I mouthed "Thank you" to Alice before everyone went to their respective cars.

Carlisle deliberately drove slower than the others so we would have more time to discuss things privately. I could see from the Jeep's rearview mirror that Emmett was a little annoyed at the slow pace we were keeping but Alice must have told him not to bother because he hit the gas then and he sped away.

"Are you alright son?" Carlisle started the conversation.

"Yes and no," I started. "First, I want to apologize to both of you for my behavior the past week, I have been needing to work through some issues and I know it has pained the two of you that I haven't discussed it with you before."

"We just don't want to see you suffer and I wish there was something we could do to help, but for that you have to talk to us," Esme said while placing her hand briefly on mine.

"I know," I hung my head in shame.

"It's alright, did it help to have some time to yourself?" she asked trying to hide the pain in her voice.

"Not really, it was probably worse, but I couldn't face the two of you yet," I admitted softly.

"What could you possibly have done that would make you think we wouldn't accept you? You're eyes aren't red so you didn't kill a human, I don't understand," my father interjected for the first time.

"It's kind of hard to explain and it's a bit embarrassing to say the least. How much have Alice and Jasper told you about it?" I asked, trying to buy some time so I could arrange my sentences correctly, knowing full well that Alice and Jasper hadn't said anything about what I was dealing with.

"They just said that you needed to sort something out for yourself and that you would come to us when you were ready for it, we've been extremely worried about you!" Esme said reprimanding.

"Sorry mom."

"That's alright, you're here now," she said softly, giving me the opportunity to continue my explanation.

"Well, remember that we came to visit you in the hospital a week ago Carlisle?" I started.

"Yes, I was already afraid that I had pushed you too much with it, I knew letting you near so many ill humans hadn't been a smart plan, I just wished you would be able to perform medicine as well, since I thought it would bring you as much joy and a sense of belonging like it has me. I'm sorry son," Carlisle said immediately, misunderstanding the direction of my question.

"That's not it Carlisle, this is not your fault in any way!" I interrupted quickly.

"Then continue," Esme suggested.

"Thanks mom. I ran into this girl at the hospital, or rather she ran into me," I said with a smile.

Esme noticed the look on my face and something about her expression changed, it went from concerned to extremely joyous instantly. _Finally_ I heard her think.

"No mom, it's not anything like that!" I said frustrated as I saw the images of a beautiful vampire girl by my side, the two of us staring into each other's eyes happily.

"Oh," she said ashamed.

"She's not a vampire," I clarified.

"Oh?" Esme said again.

"She's human, the most wonderful human I ever met, she's interesting and smart and funny and incredibly caring, although there are some things about her that I don't quite understand, like the fact that I can't seem to be able to read her mind. It's frustrating because I just want to get to know her all that much more now," I groaned out in frustration. "And then there's that vision Alice had of the two of us as a couple, she was extremely excited about the whole thing but I just don't see it happening."

"What do you mean son?" Carlisle urged me to continue.

"The moment Alice returned and saw Bella she had a vision of Bella and I as a couple, gazing lovingly into each others' eyes and everything but that's not possible is it? I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I met her and it felt like something had completely changed for me. She has been all I've been able to think about for the past couple of days and somehow she's been able to keep me from thinking of blood as well. Other than her blood that is. Her blood is the most delicious thing I have ever smelled and I just don't understand," I said as I heard Esme gasp at the significance of my last remark. "I went to my meadow that evening and Jasper joined me after Alice had sensed that I needed some help sorting through my thoughts and emotions and after a while I realized that I love her but I don't understand!" I said again, this time pinching the bridge of my nose out of frustration.

"That's wonderful!" Esme, always optimistic, cried out joyfully.

"No it isn't," I sighed. "I love her and I can't do anything about it." I buried my head in my hands in frustration.

"It's going to be fine Edward, you've finally found your mate, I can't wait to meet her!" Esme's happiness wasn't easy to break.

"Mom, first of all, she's human, second of all she moved away the day after I met her and third, why would she want anything to do with me? She doesn't even know me and it's not like I can walk up to her and express my feelings for her and tell her 'Hi, remember me? Well I figured out that I love you and that I've been waiting a little over 100 years for you'!"

"I guess that's a problem," Esme finally gave in.

"Why didn't you want to talk to us about this sooner?" Carlisle asked.

"I don't know, I know how eager Esme has been to find a mate for me as well and I didn't know how to break the news to her that I had fallen in love but that that was never going to be a possibility. But I thought you'd be disappointed in me for falling in love with a human or something, I don't know, I don't really understand what I thought you guys would think of me but I know I was just embarrassed that I had been so weak and I felt like I needed to sort out my own mess this time," I explained.

"We could have helped you. Finding a mate is not something we can control Edward, it's something that just happens to us, your whole world changes when you finally find that one special person and as much as you might want to resist it, it's impossible, the power of love is just too strong," Carlisle said wisely while grabbing Esme's hand and squeezing it gently.

"But what am I supposed to do now? Even without all the supernatural boundaries, she still moved away and the next time she'll be back in Forks is going to be around Christmas time! And even then, I don't even know if she has a boyfriend or not, or if she would even be interested in me even if she didn't have a boyfriend."

"You'll figure it out son, if anyone can do it, it's you. As for the supernatural boundaries you're talking about, didn't you say Alice had a vision of it all working out? Was that girl still human or was she a vampire?" Carlisle inquired.

"Human," I answered simply, unsure what that had to do with the whole thing.

"Well, that shows that it can work out between the two of you even with all the supernatural things that you think are standing in your way," Carlisle explained triumphantly.

"But how?" I asked.

"Only you can find the answer to that Edward, you know that, but whatever you decide to do you need to know that you can always come to us with anything, we won't judge you. You like no other know the truth of my words. If you decide to pursue this girl and make her yours than we'll support you in that and welcome her to the family like we would any other girl you would choose," Carlisle told me lovingly.

"I'm just so happy you finally found someone who's captured your interest," Esme said and everything in her mind reflected the same idea, she was thrilled to be welcoming a new member into the family so we would be all evened out.

"I don't know," I said again, weakly.

"You'll figure it out," Carlisle said confidently and I couldn't help but hope he was right.

All of a sudden that vision in Alice's mind was all I wanted.

We finally reached the national park we would be hunting at today and we got out of the car. We walked towards Emmett's Jeep, where the others had been waiting for us, and before we reached them Esme stopped to pull me in for a hug. "All I want is for you to be happy," she whispered in my ear right before letting me go again. I could read it all over her mind as well _No matter what_ she thought with a smile on her face.

Later that evening Jasper, Emmett and I were laying in the grass in our backyard and we were looking at the stars. It was a beautiful sight and we were all just happy laying there for a little while so none of us spoke.

I had allowed Alice to fill Rosalie and Emmett in on what had been going on with me. To say that Rosalie was shocked was an understatement but she said that even though she hated the idea of me being with a human, she wanted nothing more than for me to be happy and she hoped it would all turn out. That was all I had needed to hear from my sister and I had hugged her in response. Her struggle with her own immortality had made me a little weary to discuss the topic with her but she had been very gracious about it and promised me that she would also welcome her new sister with open arms if it would ever come to that.

Emmett had been a completely different case all together. He had been ecstatic for me that I had finally found a 'girl to play with' according to him and he kept asking for her nonstop even though I told him about the fact that she had moved away. He didn't seem to be able to let go of the funniness of the entire situation, he had already made numerous sex jokes in the short time he had known about my little infatuation. And it appeared that this particular moment wasn't going to be an exception to that.

"It's a good thing you're such a gentle guy Edward, because it would make it hard to sleep with her otherwise," Emmett started out of the blue while popping up on his knees so he could have a good look at my reactions.

"I couldn't sleep with her even if I wanted to," I remarked, unwilling to let him get to me again.

"Hmmm good point," he said pretending to think about my comment. "Ah well, either way let's just hope she doesn't like it rough," he said while winking at me. I could see exactly what he meant through images in his mind, me with red eyes and his triumphant smile to make it all a little worse.

Jasper sensed my mood and grabbed me before I could do anything about it. He hit me with waves of calm and I growled at him loudly, causing Emmett to fall backwards in laughter.

"I'm sorry," Emmett stuttered through the laughter. "You know I can't help myself," he said with the most innocent expression on his face he could master.

"Yeah right," I muttered but couldn't help but smile at him a little.

Jasper realized I had calmed down significantly and decided to let go of me. I rolled back on the floor and resumed gazing at the sky. I could tell from their thoughts that my brothers had done the same.

I could hear a car passing by on the main road near our house and normally I never paid attention to noises coming from those cars but this time the song that was playing in the car attracted my attention. I knew the lyrics because Emmett had bothered me with the song ever since it had been released. He thought it was a brilliant song and played it over and over until everyone in the house got sick of it and banished his stereo system from the house.

_Can we pretend that airplanes  
in the night sky  
are like shooting stars  
I could really use a wish right now,  
wish right now. _

"Hmmm a wish doesn't seem out of place right now does it?" Emmett asked, obviously having noticed the song as well.

"No it doesn't," I agreed, a little surprised that he had actually been serious for the first time tonight.

I gazed at the sky again and as I saw a couple of airplanes pass through the night sky I did make a wish, hoping with all my heart that it would come true.

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**A/N:** Well that was it for a little family moment with the Cullens. I hope you liked today's chapter and there will be a new one updated tomorrow :) Xxx Thari


	3. Chapter 3: I Wanna Be Close To You

**A/N: **Hi there, already the third day, it's been a bit of a crazy day for me today so that's why I'm a little later than usual with updating but at least I still managed to get it done today :) As always thanks for those who added my story to their favorites or story alerts and thanks for the reviews **Shirley** and **Raven's twimom**, I'm always happy to know your thoughts on my story and I'm glad you're enjoying it :)

To Shirley: Yeah daily updates can be a b*tch sometimes :P But it's all the more fun when you make it work cause people seem to appreciate it ;) You are a dramaqueen indeed but you're right I still love you ;) Dramaqueens are just fun, well depending on the type of dramaqueen but let's not get into that right now :P At least your type is fun ;)

Anyways, here's the third chapter, we'll 'finally' see a little more of Bella and Edward fluff ;) Hope you enjoy :)

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**I Wanna Be Close To You**

_I wanna be the smile you put on your face  
I wanna be your hands when you say your grace  
I wanna be whatever is your favorite place  
I just wanna be close  
I wanna be the sheets you put on your bed  
I wanna be the skirt wrapped around your legs  
I just wanna be close_

I could hear Alice's voice coming from underneath the shower and I groaned in frustration of yet another love song that got stuck in her head.

Another week had passed by and for some reason Alice couldn't stop singing love songs throughout the entire week. Whether it was in her head or out loud didn't matter, either way whenever I was near her I would hear some song or other that made my heart ache.

Alice was mostly singing these songs because Jasper had been in a really good mood lately, not bothered as much by the emotions of others because the two of them were too busy being happy together and I was truly happy for them as well but it made my life just that much more difficult. Alice and Jasper were going away for the week, just the two of them and both were eager to go. I was happy they were leaving because it meant a break from all the songs, I would prefer the kind of hiphop songs Emmett had taken to listening to over those ballads any day nowadays. Although I would miss their advice and support for the week, instead I stayed behind with Emmett's constant torturing. It was a good thing he didn't know how much these love songs were affecting me because I was sure he was going to give me a serenade every night if he ever found out.

I sighed in frustration and once again pinched the bridge of my nose between my thumb and index finger.

"Are you alright?" Rosalie asked when she walked into my room.

"I'm not sure," I answered truthfully.

Alice had just begun the last verse of the song and I groaned in agony.

_I wanna be the sun, your stars, your moon  
I wanna be a hot summer day in June  
I wanna be the smell of your sweet perfume  
I just wanna be close  
I wanna be the seed that bare your life brand new  
I wanna be the one that's so faithful and true  
I wanna be the man down the aisle in that suit  
I just wanna be close_

"It's a good thing she's going to be gone for a week," Rosalie remarked after having noticed the source of my frustration.

"I guess so," I muttered.

"Edward, isn't it time you start acting on your feelings? Sitting and moping has always been your thing but it's not getting you anywhere! You should get up from that couch you've been so close with the past couple of weeks and be a man!" Rosalie told me sternly.

"What?" I asked her incredulously.

"Go after her Edward! Gjeez, I can't believe _I_ have to be the one telling you this… It's been making us all miserable to see you like this and I'm sure you'll feel much better once you've seen her again! No way am I going to wait until Christmas for that to happen!" She rolled her eyes at me.

_I just wanna be close_

Even though Alice had moved on to a different song the title of the song and that particular line had stuck in my head like a fly on syrup. I did want to be close to Bella, I wanted to see her again, get to know her better and know whether or not she's been thinking of me too.

"Seattle isn't that far Edward, and knowing you you'll pick up on her quickly so you'll be able to work your magic on her in no time at all! So go for it already!" Rosalie continued her speech.

"I do want to see her again," I said thoughtfully.

"Who are you kidding? You've been dying to see her again and you want to talk to her and get to know her and all those things. Which is natural I guess but promise me one thing will you?" Rosalie said softly.

"What is it?"

I read it in her mind a moment before the words were out of her mouth and I couldn't help but smile at her request.

"That if she rejects you, don't sit around moping, fight for her as hard as you can and if that doesn't work, you'll let her go and live her life and you'll continue to live yours, or whatever it is we do, and stop your whining," she asked smilingly.

I could see the thoughts in her mind continuing on with _Maybe even give Tanya a chance if this doesn't work out_ but she had enough sense not to say that out loud so I ignored the fact that she had even thought about it.

"I promise," I said solemnly.

Rosalie got up and started walking towards the door.

"Thank you," I whispered softly before she closed the door behind her.

_I just wanna be close_

I couldn't help myself. At that moment I realized what I had to do and I got up, threw some clothes into a bag, booked a hotel in Seattle and all but ran towards my Volvo. I could hear the mixture of thoughts coming from the main house as I opened the door to my Volvo.

_Go get her_, Alice thought with a wink.

_That boy is crazy_, Emmett thought but couldn't help but feel a little bit proud at my new found courage.

_I hope she'll accept him for who he is_, Esme was always concerned for me.

_Be careful son_, Carlisle's 'voice' caught my attention and I turned around to smile reassuringly at him. _We're here for you no matter what_, was his response.

_Remember your promise!_ Rosalie told me sternly and I couldn't help but laugh a little at her way of being concerned for me, although she would never admit it.

I could tell Jasper was struggling with his own feelings as well as those of the rest of the family. I also knew that Alice had already told him about my plan and the way it would turn out. _No way Edward! I'm not getting in a fight with her for spoiling it for you, now go and stay out of my mind! _Jasper told me half joking half serious.

I drove off as quickly as I could and I was happy it was evening so there were less people on the road. Seattle really wasn't that far and I was at my hotel checking in within a couple of hours. I knew I wasn't going to stalk Bella in the evening so I would just have to entertain myself until tomorrow. I knew where she studied but what would I say if I'd bump into her there? She knew I was studying from home and it would be weird for me to tell her I transferred there if I didn't. I thought my best option would be to see if she would go to the library and pretend to be looking for a book there that wasn't available in Forks, perhaps for a paper I had to hand in for my study.

If she wouldn't show up to the library I would find out what her favorite place was to go after school and meet her there, pretending that it was all just a huge coincidence and that I liked to come there as well.

I just hoped she would believe my lies and she wouldn't find me creepy or weird, which come to think about it would be completely logical. If any human guy would do the same things to a human girl I would find it strange as well… Well not even just humans I guess… Although luring in the dark waiting on their prey was a really vampiric thing to do. I shook those thoughts from my mind, trying only to focus on my goal and not on the weird nature of my behavior.

The night passed by quickly as I contemplated on the best plan of action for me. I was going to see her tomorrow, which made me eager and nervous at the same time but I couldn't give up now, I was too close and I would continue on with my plan and hope it would all turn out. I cursed my sister for leaving me in the dark when she already knew the outcome, she knew I would worry and be uncertain the entire time and yet she didn't even spare me that. I was going to give her some piece of my mind when we both got back home.

At that moment my phone buzzed and I didn't have to have Alice's gift to know who that was.

_Don't even think about it, you'll thank me later!_

My lovely sister sent me.

I just smiled at the text message and hoped that she would be right because that meant the outcome was good. There was no way I was going to thank her if I was going to be disappointed here.

It was still early in the morning but I was just too eager to sit around my hotel room and wait any longer. I had decided on a quick hunt, since that could never hurt, and then on to the campus' library.

I walked into the library and I immediately noticed all the pairs of eyes that were following my every move. Of course the library would be packed with the whole cheerleader squad, ensuring me of some giggling conversations and lusty looks. Just great! I didn't think Bella would be one of the cheerleaders since she assured me that she was quite a clumsy person and she didn't seem like she liked attention all that much so I quickly averted my attention from the group of giggling girls and continued onto a dark corner of the library, I picked out a book and started flipping through the pages.

Only about halfway through the book did I realize what book I had been mindlessly flipping through while keeping a close eye on my surroundings, looking for any sign of Bella. Wuthering Heights… Not one of my personal favorites. I had read it a long time ago and never really got over how much the characters annoyed me back then. I got a little more into the book and lost my focus on the students around me for just a brief moment.

"Edward?" I heard from behind me and the sound of my name startled me. There were many Edwards in the country so it probably wasn't meant for me. I continued to stare at my book.

Then she came standing right next to me and I could breath in her scent.

"It is you!" she said triumphantly.

I looked over to my right and saw the girl I had been thinking about constantly standing right next to me, close enough for me to touch. I stared into her beautiful brown eyes and for a moment I forgot that she had spoken to me already.

"Hi Bella, what a coincidence," I said, feigning surprise.

"What are you doing here?" she asked curiously.

"I came to look for a good book to use on a paper that I have to write for one of my courses," I said vaguely. Then I looked at the book in my hands and realized how stupid that must have looked. "But as you can see I got a little distracted," I said, not even faking my embarrassment.

Bella laughed and the sound of her laughter made my heart all but jump out of my chest. It was strange how much effect this girl had on me even though I didn't even know her.

"Oh, of course," she said after she was done laughing. It seemed like she was disappointed in something, or maybe she was disappointed in me, but I still couldn't read her mind so I wasn't sure.

"So what are you looking for?" I asked her, trying to change the subject.

"I was actually looking for that book you're holding, I have a copy of it but I left it back in Forks and I wanted to read it again, it's one of my favorite books so I thought I could just as well borrow it from this library," she said while blushing a little.

"Oh, well here you go," I replied while handing her the book.

"So you like it too?" she asked curiously.

"No not really." The answer was out before I knew it. "The book always fascinated me because the characters annoyed me without end," I threw in.

We spent the next few minutes arguing over whether or not the book was a good one or not only to come to the agreement that we disagreed on the matter.

"Don't you have class?" I asked, afraid that the answer might be yes which meant that she would have to leave again soon.

"No not anymore today," she answered, seeming relieved.

"Oh that's nice, would you like to go get some coffee or something?" I proposed immediately.

Bella blushed feverishly before nodding her head.

"Great, do you know a good place around here?" I asked while smiling at her gently.

"Not really, I don't go out here as much," she admitted a little ashamed.

It couldn't be for lack of friends or dates, since I could hear the thoughts of people around her and especially guys were very interested in her. For some reason that aggravated me but I couldn't let her know without being too obvious or blowing my cover.

"Too busy?" I asked interested.

"No not really, but I'd rather just stay indoors and read or something," she admitted, apparently a little uncomfortable with the topic.

"Alright, well don't worry, I'm sure we can find something nice," I tried to reassure her. "In fact, I think I know a place but it's a little drive from here though, I don't know if you mind?" I asked, leaving it up to her whether or not she was comfortable enough to be in the same car with me.

"That's fine, I don't have anywhere I have to be today anyways, do you want to drive or should we take my truck?" she asked, not seeming scared of the idea at all.

I felt a sigh of relief at her acceptance and my stomach felt like it was inside a rollercoaster with the twists and flips it was making. If this was love it was annoying!

I smiled at Bella's response and suggested we take my Volvo. After we had passed her truck I was happy for the decision to take my car, it would have taken us forever to reach the café I wanted to go to if we were driving in that ancient thing.

"It's a bit of an old model but it still works and my dad gave it to me, it has character," she explained when she caught me staring at her truck.

"Does it even go above fifty?" I asked incredulously.

"Not really, but I don't drive far anyways so it doesn't matter," she said while shrugging.

Just as I thought, clearly not a car for me.

After a few comments from Bella on my driving we arrived at the café where we spent the rest of the afternoon just talking and hanging out. It was one of the most fun afternoons I had ever spent. I got to learn more about Bella as a person as well as the people in her life. It was interesting to see that she wasn't like most girls I knew or had ever met. In fact, I had never met anyone quite like her. I already knew she was special when I'd first met her but I would have never guessed she was going to be this amazing. She was caring, sweet and funny while very modest and a little shy, which only added to her appeal.

To my surprise I hardly even noticed the scent of her blood anymore after I had spent the entire afternoon being around her and it was a relief. It gave me hope that maybe, just maybe, we would be able to be together after all, without too many complications.

Too quickly the afternoon ended and unfortunately it was time for me to go back to my room. Bella said that she was going to be studying without breaks for the coming weeks and she would have no time to go anywhere or do anything anymore and she wasn't particularly looking forward to it.

"By the way things are going now, I'll only be free around Christmas again. I'll be lucky if I can get in a few phone calls a day," she said when we were leaving the restaurant to go back to the car. "And then I also have to manage my job in the meantime, that's going to be one hell of a semester!" she exclaimed a little exhausted already.

"Don't you have fall break?" I asked surprised.

"Yes I do but I'm going to be working on my extra credit project then so that won't really be a 'break' for me either," she replied sadly.

"I'm sorry," I said, trying to comfort her a little.

"It's alright, I chose all the extra courses and my job and everything and I don't mind doing it, it's just that I had so much fun today and I'm sad that I won't be able to do it more often," she said while blushing heavily.

She rendered me speechless for a moment, I hadn't expected something like this. The sense of hope that was building inside my chest was undeniable and even though I was working hard to get it under control I could already tell it was a losing battle so I might as well give up now and act on my feelings before it was too late.

"I enjoyed my time with you today very much as well Bella," I said earnestly. "I love talking to you."

"I love talking to you too," Bella admitted shyly.

"Well, if you don't have time to visit or receive visitors but you are able to make a few phone calls a day, why don't we just make one of those calls between the two of us?" I suggested, bracing myself for her to turn me down.

"I would like that a lot!" she replied immediately, her response was so enthusiastic that it made me smile and my entire body filled with heat.

"Great!" I replied happily.

When we arrived back at the campus we exchanged phone numbers and I promised Bella I would call her soon. I walked out of the car to open the door for her. Although the moment she got out of the car she stumbled over something and I had to catch her to keep her from falling right back into the car. Her hands were automatically around my neck in a reflex and we were standing there, holding each other and just staring into each others' eyes for an immeasurable moment. The feel of her body so close to mine was extraordinary and I didn't want to break away from this ever again. For some reason she seemed the same way as she continued to stare right back at me.

I didn't think I was ever going to get another chance like this again so I decided to act now before it was too late. I bent my head down towards hers slightly, bringing my lips closer to hers in the process, I lingered centimeters away from her face so she could decide on whether or not she wanted to close the last bit of distance between us. My heart filled with joy the moment she decided to close that distance as she planted her lips on mine softly.

I hugged her closer to me for a moment while our lips continued to discover each other. It was an incredible sensation, one unlike anything I had ever experienced before and I couldn't tell if this was the same or better than drinking a human's blood and even though I wasn't sure this had been a smart move, I had never been more happy about any decision I had ever made.

We finally broke contact after a while and it seemed we were both dizzy from the experience.

"Wow," Bella breathed after she had caught her breath.

I chuckled. Even after so many years of 'life' I had never kissed anyone, this was my very first kiss and I couldn't have used any better words to describe it, it was perfect and I was happy that Bella seemed to have felt the same.

"I guess you'll have to go now," she continued after I didn't say anything.

"I guess so," I replied reluctantly.

"I can't believe I won't see you for so long!" she said suddenly and the sadness in her voice broke my heart.

"I know, but we'll call," I promised her, my voice just as sad as hers had been.

"Promise?" she asked.

"Promise!" I smiled at her reassuringly. She seemed to deliberate my answer for a moment while staring into my face but then she decided that I was telling the truth and she nodded slightly.

"Alright," she gave in.

"Goodbye Bella, good luck with everything, if you need some help or something just let me know," I offered, not caring that it might sound strange coming from someone who, in her eyes, is trying to get his degree off the internet.

Bella didn't seem surprised and she wasn't mocking me in any way, she just answered me solemnly. "Thank you, I will. I'll talk to you soon," she said as her goodbye.

I bent down once more to place my lips on hers briefly, I brushed my hand across her cheek, reveling in the wonderful burning sensation the touch of her skin left on mine, and then I turned around and started walking back to my car.

I drove straight back home, still dizzy from the events of today and eager to talk about it with either Jasper or Alice or maybe even Carlisle. I never really cared for radio much when I was driving but now I just wanted to hear something other than the sound of my own thoughts so I searched for Alice's favorite channel and I couldn't help but smile when I heard the familiar lyrics to the song.

_See my life is filled with ups and downs  
And I'm okay when you're around  
And when I'm in a storm and my nights are cold  
Reach out your hand for me to hold  
See you're my queen on a throne  
And you're the reason for a song  
_

By the time the song reached the final chorus I was singing along to it loudly, not caring about anything other than the lyrics to the song and the thoughts of Bella in my head.

_I just wanna be close_

How true those words were!

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**A/N:** Well that was it for this chapter, a little more Bella x Edward action this time :) Hope you liked it :) Let me know :) There will be another update tomorrow so stay tuned ;) Xxx Thari


	4. Chapter 4: No You Hang Up

**A/N: **Well here we are again. I'm going to keep this A/N short cause I don't have much time :P Anyways, thanks for the review **Shirley** you rock! :D

To Shirley: I haven't even thought about the Vampire Diaries... How bad is that! I'm totally going to have to download it as soon as I'm home again! Can't wait now! :O I'm glad you like the fluffiness :D

Here's the fourth chapter, enjoy :)

**

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****No You Hang Up**

Over the weeks that followed my visit to Seattle the relationship between Bella and me increased tenfold. We spoke on the phone almost every day and the only time we didn't talk was if she had a really big test or assignment coming up and she needed her time to focus. This was because we both knew that the moment we would start talking we wouldn't stop for at least the next hour or so.

Our phone calls were at regular times every day and we both made sure we didn't have anything else to do during that time. This to both great annoyance as well as pleasure of my family. Emmett couldn't stop teasing me about the fact that I was already at her beck and call.

"Edward, it's seven thirty, shouldn't you be in your room already, waiting desperately for Bella to call at eight o'clock like you do every day?" Emmett asked me one day, wearing his most innocent expression.

"Let him be Emmett! He's in love," Alice said trying to defend me but only adding to Emmett's joy.

"It's alright, Emmett is right though, I should be waiting by the phone by now, but since I know all of you are dying to know what our conversations are about I think I'll take my phone outside, far away from every single one of you," I said triumphantly before walking out of the door with my phone securely in my hand.

Everyone was stunned at my move since most of them all stayed home in the evening as well for their own amusement, hearing my conversations with Bella had become some sort of family activity. I felt like we were like Grey's Anatomy or any other show Rosalie, Esme and Alice all took the time to watch every single day.

At exactly eight o'clock my phone rang and I didn't have to look on my screen to know who it was.

"Right on time," I answered happily.

"Sorry, were you expecting an important call from someone?" Emmett's voice came from the other end of the line and it took all my control to not run back and strangle the life out of my brother, if that had been possible at all.

"Leave me alone Emmett!" I growled into the phone before hanging up.

The call took a total of two seconds so the chance that I had actually missed Bella's call was slim. Luckily it didn't take her long to call me. We had made an arrangement to split the costs of the phone calls evenly over the two of us, which meant that she would call me one day and I would call her the next. I didn't want her to pay for any of the calls since I had infinitely more money than she probably had and I didn't want to be a burden in any way but she had insisted and even though I resented Emmett's comments about me being at her beck and call I still wanted to give her everything she desired so it was hard to argue with her.

"Hi there," I answered the phone happily after having made sure that it was indeed Bella and not another one of Emmett's pranks.

"Hi," she replied sweetly and the sound of her voice was enough to make me forget everything else around me.

I was on my way to my meadow, the only place I could truly be alone, a place I wanted to share with Bella more than anything and this way it was like we were actually there together.

After the usual pleasantries of exchanging our experiences of the day we moved on to other topics that we hadn't discussed before. It was hard to keep track of everything we talked about throughout our phone calls and even though you would think we would run out of things to say to each other we never had a quiet moment during our hour together.

Bella told me about her future plans and I couldn't help but marvel at the things she envisioned. She was very realistic and modest in her plans but from the sound of it it would make her happy. It was strange that even though she had her future pretty much planned out she never once mentioned children. What I knew from both my sisters and my mother was that all they ever wanted was to start a family and have children and the fact that that was taken away from them by what we are made them all a little sad about our existence at times, Esme and Rosalie more than Alice. But Bella didn't seem to have the same desires. That didn't mean that they wouldn't come eventually but the thought made me hopeful that she would one day be joining me in eternity without having to regret not being able to have children.

I shook the thought from my head quickly. I wouldn't wish this life on anyone so how could I want the woman I love to become like me? Although she didn't even know what I truly was at this point. I sometimes had the feeling she could sense that I was hiding something from her but I was never certain. I struggled with how she would react when she finally found out. I'm no good for her and I didn't want to keep lying to her the entire time. Maybe the next time I would see her I would show her what I truly am and then hope on the one hand that she would accept me for who I am while hoping on the other hand that she would run away screaming so she would be safe from me and my kind.

"You've been very quiet today," Bella broke me out of my thoughts. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, sorry, I've been thinking about some things, I didn't mean to be rude," I apologized.

"You're not being rude, I'm just worried about you," she replied immediately.

"You don't have to be worried about me," I assured her.

"I still am," she said stubbornly, causing me to smile. "I always have the feeling that you're hiding something from me and I can't help but wonder if it's something really bad," she continued softly.

"What do you mean?" I asked, trying to play dumb.

"Well, I don't know, it's weird, it's like you want to be with me and you want to talk to me but on the other hand it feels like you're trying to keep me away as well and I don't understand why. And then there's the feeling that you want to tell me something sometimes but then at the last moment decide not to. I can't really explain it," she said apologetically.

"I think you just did," I responded. I was surprised to learn how much she really had picked up and how observant she really was. I already knew that she wasn't like other people and that she was very bright but I hadn't expected her to already realize as much as she had. "But you're right though," I said, not able to lie to her directly.

"But you're not going to tell me what it is?" she asked. "Is it something I did?" I could tell in her voice that she was worried and I wanted to take that away from her.

"Of course it's not something you did! You're great!" I replied immediately and I heard her let out a sigh in relief. I smiled briefly at her enthusiasm but then grew anxious again as I realized I was going to have to come clean to her some time. "It's just that I'm not right for you, it's not good for you to be around me," I said cryptically.

"What do you mean?" she was still worried and sounded a little scared now.

"It's kind of hard to explain and I'm afraid you'll take it wrong," whichever was the wrong way to take it I wasn't sure… "but I'm not like other boys you've met before," I said cautiously.

"I know that, that's what I like about you," Bella replied immediately and I imagined she would be blushing by now.

"I don't know how to explain this to you in a right way," I said sadly.

"Why don't you just say it? Get it over with," she suggested.

"I don't know if I can," I admitted.

"It can't be _that_ bad," Bella encouraged me.

"Trust me, it is," I replied darkly.

"I'm sure I can handle whatever it is, I just hate to have to worry about you and not know what's going on," Bella said softly.

"Alright, well remember when you bumped into me at the hospital?" I asked.

"Of course I do," Bella said certainly.

"Alright, what exactly do you remember about me from then, what were your first thoughts?"

"I don't know," Bella said cautiously.

"I'm sure you do, try to remember," I said a little more sternly than I had intended and I hoped I hadn't scared her off.

"Alright, I remember thinking you were more handsome than anyone I had ever seen," she started and I could tell she was embarrassed.

"Okay, what else?" I encouraged her.

"Uhm, you smelled incredible," she continued. "And I felt safe with you."

She wasn't going to figure it out this way.

"Alright, and the moment you bumped into me without having looked at me?" I tried.

"I thought I had hit a wall," she said and she gasped as she realized what she had just said. "Your skin was rock hard and stone cold!" she exclaimed.

"That's right," I said sadly, knowing this could very well be the end of our relationship.

"And you're so pale," she continued as the pieces started to fall into place with her.

"Yes, that too," I admitted.

"Why is that?" she asked warily.

"That's because I'm not like you," I admitted truthfully.

"What does that mean? What are you like then?" she asked, sensing the direction the conversation had taken.

"It means I'm not human," I replied softly, trying to scare her as little as possible.

"What are you then?" she asked thoughtfully.

"It's hard to explain," I said again, trying to buy some time, unsure how I was going to break this to her.

"Why?" she asked again.

"Well there's something you should know before I can continue," I started.

"Oh?" she replied.

"My family and I, we're different from others of our kind, we don't do the same things they do. That doesn't mean we're not still dangerous but we try our best not to harm anyone," I explained.

"I don't understand," Bella said confused and I couldn't blame her, I wasn't really making this easier on her.

"Others of my kind, they feed off of humans, but my family and I we don't, we only hunt animals," I rushed out the words quickly, hoping that she wouldn't really catch them.

"So… What are you then?" she asked, unwilling to let it go just yet.

"Vampires," I finally said the word and I heard her gasp on the other end of the line.

"How is that possible?" she asked after a moment of silence.

"I was created by another vampire, my father, he's the reason me and my family don't hunt humans," I explained.

"Oh, uuuhm…" Bella stuttered.

"It's alright, you don't have to say anything," I said calmly while my inside was complete chaos, I had just done the one thing I knew I had to do but never wanted to and now I had lost her.

"I don't know what to do," she said.

"That's alright, why don't you just take some time to figure it all out? I won't contact you again and I'll let you live in peace, if you want to talk to me again you have my number but don't feel obliged to use it. I would never harm you Bella, just know that," I said before ending the conversation. I would hear from her if she wanted to talk to me again but I wasn't counting on it.

A week went by without hearing from Bella and I had lost all hope of ever talking to her again. I remembered the promise I had made to Rosalie a while back and I was determined to honor that promise. So I pretended that nothing had ever happened and continued to live my life with my family the way I had done before. Only Alice and Jasper could really tell the difference but everyone knew that I wasn't the same I had always been. I was in my room more often than I had been before and I was more quiet, less eager to participate in family activities but I tried and to Rosalie that was all that she required for now. So I was safe.

"I've had it! I've seen it work out so it has to work out! Just call her!" Alice said after a week and a half had gone by.

"I can't I promised I wouldn't bother her again," I said sadly.

"Well, that's a promise you're going to have to break then!" Alice said sternly.

"I won't, she's being smart in staying away from me, I'll honor that decision.

"It's not right Edward," Alice tried to argue but she could see that it was pointless.

"Well, I never made such a promise," she suddenly said triumphantly and before I could stop her she was already dialing Bella's number.

"Hello?" I could hear on the other end of the line and even now her voice made my heart jump in my chest.

"Hi, Bella? This is Alice, Edward's sister," Alice said determinedly.

"I remember you, hi Alice," Bella said, sounding like she was talking to an old friend. Her tone confused me, she should be terrified by now.

"I was just wondering why you hadn't called my brother back?" Alice asked without any warning.

"Oh, that's just because I figured he didn't want to talk to me anymore," Bella replied a little taken aback and from the sound of it a little ashamed as well.

"That's what I thought as well, I'll give the phone over to him right now," she said triumphantly before handing me the phone. She stuck out her tongue smugly before leaving the room to give me some privacy.

"Hi Bella?" I asked cautiously.

"Hi," she replied shyly.

"How have you been?"

"I'm not sure, I missed our conversations," she admitted and the joy that washed over me was unparalleled.

"Me too," I admitted immediately.

"Why didn't you call?" Bella asked in a bit of an accusing manner.

"I told you I wouldn't bother you anymore right? I wanted you to decide whether or not you were okay with who, or rather what, I am, and I didn't want to influence your choice or complicate things any further for you," I admitted.

"If you hadn't hung up on me that time I could have already told you that I was fine with it, that it didn't matter, I knew from the beginning that I was safe with you so it doesn't matter what you are, I was just scared that you were frustrated with me because I wasn't like you," she said softly.

I was stunned by what she had just said, I didn't understand how she could come up with those things, I thought I had been perfectly clear on the phone previously.

"That's my mistake then, I wanted nothing more than to talk to you but I was afraid you might be too scared of me," I explained.

"I'm not scared," she replied determinedly.

"It's not smart," I said ruefully.

"Then maybe I'm not smart, I don't care, I like you and I want to be with you," she said forcefully and I couldn't stop my emotions from running wild. Hearing those words from her lips was everything I had ever wanted and although it was bittersweet in a way I couldn't deny my joy and love any longer.

"Alright," I gave in.

We carried on our conversation like nothing had ever happened, we spent the next hours catching up on our weeks, or more on her week since mine was uneventful and mostly just sad, I didn't want her to feel sorry for me.

Occasionally Bella would ask me some questions about my 'life' and I was happy to answer anything for her.

By the time I looked at the clock again I noticed it was already past midnight and I knew I was keeping Bella from her well-needed sleep.

"You should go to bed, I'll be here tomorrow," I promised.

"I don't want to hang up," she said sadly.

"Me neither but I don't want you to be dead on your feet tomorrow, no pun intended," I replied jokingly.

Bella laughed and I marveled in the wonderful sound for a moment.

"Alright, why don't you hang up then," she challenged.

"But you're the one who needs to go to bed, you hang up," I replied playfully.

"You're the one who wants me to go to bed not me, you hang up," she shot back.

We continued our little banter for a while before we settled on both hanging up at the same time.

"Sweet dreams, sweet Bella," I said lovingly.

"Good night Edward," she replied.

We counted down from 3 and both hung up at the same time. I smiled at our little scene since I had never thought that ever happened in real life though I had seen it in movies so many times before.

"You hang up, no you hang up, you two are sooooo adorable," Emmett said the moment I walked downstairs.

"Shut up," I growled halfheartedly, too happy to care about his teasing.

As if to put some more force into his teasing Emmett went to his laptop and started searching for something. He had clearly found it because a number started playing from the speakers and Emmett started singing along to the lyrics loudly while pretending to perform it just for me.

_A lot of girls are sexy but you know how to use it_

Emmett sang while wiggling his eyebrows at me.

_You can keep me up on the phone all night  
We say let's hang up on 3 but we don't ever do it  
Ain't it crazy how after all this time  
We got that you hang up no you hang up kind of love  
We got that you hang up no you hang up kind of love_

I wasn't bothered by Emmett's teasing and I actually thought it was quite funny so I just smiled at him serenely waiting for him to be done. It didn't take long before he thought the fun was gone and he left me alone. I would never admit it to him but the song got stuck in my head and I had to smile every time I heard the lyrics and how true they really were.

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**A/N: **Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter :) Let me know your thoughts :) I'll be back tomorrow :) Xxx Thari


	5. Chapter 5: Far Away

**A/N: **Well here we are again, chapter five this time :) Hmm… Five… I was quite convinced this was chapter four but that's apparently not the case ;) Well.. either way :D Thanks for the reviews **Emma-MasenCullen**, **ravenlovestwilight** and **Shirley**. Glad you all enjoy my story so far :)

To Emma-MasenCullen: I'm glad you're reading my new story :) Always love getting reviews from you :)

To Shirley: I saw the episode… Why are you not online? :O Anyways, more fluff this chapter :) Especially for you :D That and the fact that I love writing fluff ;) Thanks for the awesome review as always! :D

To everyone: Enjoy the next chapter, it's inspired by the Nickelback song 'Far Away' I just love Nickelback and this is certainly one of my favorites! :)

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**Far Away**

"Oh my God Edward!" Alice came barging in to my room excitedly.

"Hi Alice, come in," I said sarcastically.

"Yeah, hi," she replied quickly before jumping onto my sofa.

"What is it?" I asked only half curious, it was never very hard to get Alice excited for something so it couldn't really be that special.

"I just had the most brilliant idea _ever_!" she announced proudly.

"What are you talking about?" I asked a little more curious now.

"Well, I was flipping through today's paper and I noticed an add that said that Nickelback is playing in Seattle next week," she started.

I had always liked Nickelback, they had some good music and even before they became famous I had been listening to their tracks.

"That would be fun," I said thoughtfully.

"Yes it would, but Jasper already had something planned for us so I was thinking, maybe you could surprise Bella with two tickets and take her, since it's in Seattle anyways and you've been dying to see her and everything," Alice explained enthusiastically.

She smiled at the expression on my face as it lit up in excitement. I quickly made my way over to my sister and picked her up from the sofa before starting to spin around with her.

"You're the best sister I could have ever wished for!" I said sincerely.

Alice was giggling like a little girl by the time I had released her and she gave me a kiss on my cheek before dashing out my room, I had some arrangements to make.

I quickly booked a hotel room for me so I could arrive a little bit earlier and maybe surprise Bella during the day if she wasn't too busy. I searched for tickets online and was extremely happy to find two front row tickets for Friday evening. They were extremely expensive but would be worth it without a doubt.

I was a little scared that I would ruin the surprise in my enthusiasm the next time I would talk to Bella on the phone but I just had to work extra hard not to let that happen.

I told Esme and Carlisle of my plan not much later and they were both extremely excited for me.

"I'm sure she would love that," Esme said lovingly.

"I hope so," I replied while shrugging.

It was going to be the first time in a very long time that I was going to see her and it was going to be the first time that I was going to see her after she had heard about my true nature, which might make things a little complicated when it would be just the two of us. I decided to share my doubts with Carlisle sometime the coming week.

The opportunity to discuss it privately with Carlisle presented itself on Thursday when the rest of the family was out of the house, the girls were shopping and the boys were on the hunt for some new electronic toys for them to play with so we had the house all to ourselves.

"Carlisle, would you like to come hunting with me? I'm going to go to Seattle in a few hours and I want to make sure nothing goes wrong when I'm alone with Bella," I offered.

"That sounds great son," Carlisle replied enthusiastically.

We drove to a sight not far from the house to hunt some local deer, it wasn't my favorite but we didn't have time for anything more exotic so this would have to do.

"Was there something you wanted to discuss?" Carlisle asked when we were done feeding.

"How did you know?" I asked curiously.

"Well, I figured tomorrow would be somewhat of a breaking point in your relationship with Bella and I had a feeling you might have some questions or doubts that you wanted to discuss. And since you were eager to be alone with me this morning I figured now would be the time for us to have that talk away from everyone else," Carlisle said knowingly.

"You were right, as usual," I said with a smile.

"What is it you wanted to discuss?" he encouraged.

"Well, as you know I haven't seen Bella since I've told her about what I am and on the phone she's fine with it and she asks questions and it seems like it isn't even bothering her in the slightest but I can't help but wonder if that would all change if she sees me for real. Our relationship is great over the phone but I'm afraid it'll be very difficult in real life," I admitted a little ashamed.

"I wish there was something I could say that would take all your doubts away but if you want to know whether or not she's still going to accept you when you're face to face you'll have to talk with Alice," he said with a little smile.

"I have talked to Alice but since Bella hasn't been presented with the opportunity of being face to face and she doesn't know that she's going to have to deal with it this soon, Alice can't see how she's going to react because Bella doesn't know how she's going to react yet," I said sadly.

"Well, then there's only one thing you can do right? Go for it and hope for the best," Carlisle said jokingly.

I smiled halfheartedly at his joke but he could see that I was really bothered by it so he quickly got serious again.

"I know this is difficult for you Edward, especially since you're not just dealing with normal feelings but you're also dealing with the supernatural and I really wish I had some examples to help you get through this but I've never come across a situation quite like yours so I can't tell you what the right thing to do is in this case. What I can tell you is that Alice has seen the two of you together already and since Bella didn't run away screaming the moment you told her what you were I'm pretty sure she'll be just fine with this as well. It might take her a little while to adjust to the situation when you actually see her again but all you can do then is be patient with her and trust that she'll sort it out and do what's best for her. You're just going to have to trust the relationship you've built so far and hope for the best," Carlisle said wisely and even though he hadn't given me exactly what I wanted, namely a play-by-play of what was going to happen, I was still a little more calm and confident about the entire situation.

"Thank you Carlisle," I said sincerely, unable to say anything else.

"You're welcome son. Are you ready to go back now or was there something else you wanted to discuss with me?" he asked.

"Well," I started a little uncomfortably. Carlisle raised his eyebrows in surprise, he had thought that this was all I had been worried about. "There is one other thing," I admitted and if I had still been able to blush I would be bright red by now.

"Tell me," Carlisle encouraged.

"I don't know how to be close to someone," I said embarrassed. "Not that I'm expecting that to happen now or anything but I still don't know what to do about it all, we've kissed once before and that was great but I don't know what she's going to expect and I don't really know what to do about it all," I rushed out.

"I see," Carlisle said thoughtfully. "That's one problem I might be able to help you with, you know from your brothers and sisters as well as from my own memories and your mother's what it's like for us to be close," Carlisle started.

"A little too well," I interjected jokingly.

"Yes, tell me about it," Carlisle replied with a wink. "But I think it's still good to discuss it a little. Physical attraction for us is something that changes us completely in the best possible way. It's a very powerful thing and when we completely let go it's more amazing than anything else, even drinking human blood, so I've heard," Carlisle explained. "But in your case it's going to be very different, and I know you're not talking about intercourse right now, but even with kissing, a passionate kiss can change you completely. But in your situation it's key that you can't let go completely, ever, or you might hurt Bella, you have to find a boundary for yourself and stick to it, so that it's safe and enjoyable for both of you," he said knowingly.

"I know, that's going to be the hardest part," I agreed.

"As to what she might expect, I'm not the right person to talk to about that, you'll have to hear it from Bella, just be open with her, explain the problem you're having and I'm sure you'll find that she's been worried about the same thing. You'll work it out together, that's part of the fun," he finished with a smile.

"Thank you, you've really helped me clear my head a little," I said gratefully.

"I'm glad, now let's get back, you should get going soon as well," he said before patting me on the back in show of support.

The next morning I was in my room in Seattle, I was excited that I was going to see Bella again and I was also excited for the concert tonight. The concert was at the other side of town from where Bella was and I had chosen my hotel to be close to the stage rather than close to campus.

At noon I couldn't wait any longer and I stepped in my car to make my way to the campus. I decided to try Bella's dorm first, I knew she didn't have many classes on Friday and she would be done within an hour. I would wait for her in front of her door and hope she would come straight to her room after class.

Luckily it didn't take Bella long to show up at her door and the moment she noticed me her eyes widened in surprise and she ran towards me excitedly. I caught her in my arms and hugged her close to my body. So much for being afraid things were going to be awkward.

"What are you doing here?" she asked surprised as she breathed in my scent and pressed her head to my chest.

I chuckled. "I came to surprise you, did it work?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Of course! You have no idea how great it is to see you again!" she exclaimed.

"I'm glad," I murmured as I put my head on her hair and inhaled her scent. Immediately my throat started burning but it wasn't hard to ignore the pain, I was holding the girl I loved in my arms after too long a time of being apart.

"Do you want to come in?" she asked a little unsurely.

"If you want me to," I replied, leaving it up to her.

"Sure," she said as she lead the way into her room.

It was a small room and she didn't own a couch or anything so the only place to sit was on her bed. I didn't want to be rude so I just stood there in the middle of her room, waiting for her to say something.

"You can sit down if you want to," she suggested and I placed myself on the bed. "Do you want something to drink?" she asked and the moment she realized what she had said she turned bright red and started to apologize.

I cut her off gently. "That's alright, I fed yesterday," I said jokingly and luckily she laughed and loosened up again.

"Sorry," she muttered.

"It's alright love," I said kindly.

She came to sit next to me and put her head against my shoulder. I happily wrapped my arm around her and pulled her even closer. I couldn't imagine it was comfortable for her to sit like this, hugging a rock the way she was, but she seemed content and I wasn't complaining.

"So you drove all this way just to see me?" she asked after a while.

"It's not _that_ far," I said smilingly. "But no I have another reason as well," I continued.

"Oh?" she asked curiously and I thought that she was a little disappointed at my answer.

"Well, there's this concert in Seattle tonight, by Nickelback and I think they're a really good band, I have two front row tickets so I came here to see if you wanted to go with me?"

She looked up to me in surprise before breaking down in a brilliant smile. "I would love to!" she replied enthusiastically and I could feel my heart glow with warmth at her smile.

"Great, why don't I take you out to dinner beforehand?" I offered.

"Wouldn't that be strange for you?" she asked curiously.

"No silly, I just wouldn't eat or drink anything but I'm used to that, I've done high school cafeterias and everything already remember?" I answered smilingly.

"Right, sounds great," she said then.

"Do you have a lot of homework planned for today? Because then I can leave you so you can focus on that for a while and then I'll come pick you up for dinner," I suggested.

"No! I mean I do have homework but I don't want you to leave, if you don't mind staying?" she responded.

"Not at all," I said happily.

I spent the afternoon watching Bella do her homework and I was happy to know that she was quite good at everything, she had almost every assignment done right. I didn't want to intervene a lot so I just marveled at her beauty silently most of the time, sometimes helping her if there was something she was struggling with, which wasn't very often.

"I need to get changed," Bella said after she had finished all her homework.

"I'll give you a moment, just let me know when you're done," I offered before stepping into the hallway to give her some privacy.

Fifteen minutes later Bella was ready to go and she looked gorgeous. She was wearing a blue blouse that made her look incredible and I couldn't help but peek at her every once in a while just to see if she was real only to be met by a brilliant smile every single time.

Dinner passed by quickly and I was happy to see that she was enjoying herself, she seemed very comfortable around me and I was wondering if that was just an act or if that was really how she felt. So I decided to ask her about it.

"I told you, I felt safe with you the first time I met you. We've talked so often that I feel like I know everything there is to know about you and those two combined with the feelings I have for you make that I'm very comfortable and happy when I'm near you," was her surprised reply.

The concert took three hours and it was the best concert I had ever been to. Bella seemed to be enjoying herself immensely as she swayed to the music, careful not to move too much, she said that that was because she was scared she would trip and fall and no matter how many times I assured her that I would never let her fall, she didn't change.

They started playing the final song and it was one of my personal favorites, especially since I had met Bella.

"This song always makes me think of you," I told Bella as the first notes of the song sounded through the area.

I wrapped my arms around Bella so we could sway to the music together and she leaned into me eagerly.

When it was time for the chorus I leaned down to Bella's ear and started singing along to the song just for her, letting her know the meaning the song had to me.

_That I love you, I have loved you all along  
And I miss you, been far away for far too long  
I keep dreaming you'll be with me and you'll never go  
Stop breathing if I don't see you anymore_

I looked into Bella's eyes and I saw a tear falling down her cheek. I caught it with my finger and turned Bella around so she was facing me directly.

"I love you Bella Swan," I said solemnly.

"I love you too Edward Cullen," she said the one thing that could make this evening more perfect than it already was.

I leaned down and passionately kissed the girl of my dreams. She eagerly wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged herself closer to me. We stood there, swaying to the music while never breaking the kiss, for the rest of the song and it was the most perfect moment I had ever had.

"So where are you staying tonight?" Bella asked on the way back to campus.

"A hotel not far from here," I replied.

"Oh," was her only reply.

I wondered about the reason behind her question as we drove in silence the rest of the way.

"We're here," Bella said sounding a little sad.

I smiled at her reluctance. "Yes we are," I said just as sadly.

"I don't want this night to end, it was so great!" Bella said. "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome, I had a great time as well," I replied sincerely.

"Would it be really strange if I asked you to stay?" Bella asked a little shyly.

"You want me to stay?" I asked incredulously.

"Only if you want to," she replied quickly.

"I would love to, I just didn't think you would want me to," I responded.

"Well I do want you to stay," she said determinedly.

"Alright, then I'll stay."

I gave her a few moments of privacy so she could get ready for bed. When she was done she quickly crawled in bed next to me. I covered her in a blanket so she wouldn't get cold from my touch and then held her in my arms. I started humming a tune I hadn't heard before that just came into my mind and before I knew it Bella was sound asleep in my arms. Every now and then she was happily sighing my name and it brought me great joy every single time. It was the perfect way to end a perfect day.

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**A/N:** Well that was it for the fifth chapter :) Hope you all enjoyed it :) Tomorrow I'll be back with chapter six :) Xxx Thari


	6. Chapter 6: Right Here, Right Now

**A/N:** Here we are again, chapter 6 finished and uploaded :) Thanks so much for the wonderful reviews **Robsten Lover 223**, **Shirley** and **Raven's twimom**.

To Shirley: why do we keep missing each other? :O I'm glad you liked the previous chapter so much :D I'm sure you'll enjoy the family moments in this one as well ;)

To Raven's twimom: I'm flattered that you got your daughter to read this story as well, thank you so much :) I hope I won't disappoint you :)

The chapter is inspired by "Right Here Right Now" from High School Musical III, I know it's kind of pathetic for a 20-year old girl but I just love those movies :D They make me happy, the songs are awesome - personal favorite is "I Don't Dance" from number II, just a little FYI ;) And that has mostly to do with the fact that I love baseball more than my own life basically :P and I think this particular song, Right Here Right Now, is just very sweet and adorable and perfect so it was a good inspiration for anything that had to do with our favorite couple and this is chapter is what my imagination came up with - and I just enjoy watching them very much... It doesn't hurt that I think the Zack Efron is just very cute/adorable ;) But alright :D Before this turns into yet another one of my almost famous LONG A/N's I'll stop with the babbling... Here's the next chapter, enjoy Christmas at the Cullens ;)

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**Right Here, Right Now**

Finally it was the week of Christmas and Bella would return to Forks to celebrate the holidays with her father as well as with me. I couldn't be more happy than I was right now. Her father was picking Bella up at this very moment and I was currently laying on my sofa waiting for my phone to ring so that I could go over to see Bella and to be formally introduced to her father.

The plan was that we would spend today at her father's place. Bella's father, who was the chief of police in the town of Forks, had been a bit grumpy to learn that it wasn't going to be just him and Bella the entire time and that Bella would be spending Christmas morning at my place. Chief Swan would go to the reservation to celebrate Christmas morning with his friends but he was still sad that Bella wouldn't be joining him even though she had reserved Christmas Eve just for him.

It seemed like forever until my phone rang and when it finally did I was already in my car on my way to her house, I was just too eager to see her.

The moment I arrived at the house she was already waiting by the door, looking as lovely as ever, and she welcomed me by jumping into my arms and kissing me senseless. I could hear her father's thoughts coming from within the house, he was impatiently waiting to meet me, so I pushed Bella back a little bit and took one of her hands into mine as we walked into the house.

"Dad, this is Edward Cullen, Edward this is my father," Bella introduced us.

_She told you to be nice Charlie, remember that! This kid is trying to steal my daughter away from me and I can't even do anything about it! How much does she really know about him anyways? They've only met twice or something right? _Charlie's thoughts reached me and I had to work hard not to smile. He obviously didn't know about the phone calls and he wasn't aware of the intensity of my feelings for his daughter.

"It's a pleasure to meet you chief Swan," I said politely while extending my hand towards him.

"Please, call me Charlie, it's nice to meet you too Edward," Charlie responded while shaking my hand.

"Let's go inside," Bella suggested as she walked towards the living room, holding on to my hand as if her life depended on it.

Bella and I sat down on the couch and Charlie took place in his chair across from us.

_They look really close together, the way she's looking at him, I've never seen her like that around anyone before. Then again, she's never brought another boy into my house so what would I know. But he seems nice enough and he must have something good for my girl to fall for him. _Charlie thought while examining Bella and me.

"So, you've stolen my little girl's heart, huh?" Charlie asked half joking, half serious.

"Dad!" Bella cried out in horror. "You don't have to answer that Edward," she said to me while blushing deeply.

"That's alright." I tried to comfort her by squeezing her hand gently. "Well sir, I can't speak for her of course but I have grown very fond of Bella over the past half a year. She's a great girl," I said sincerely, downplaying my feelings for Bella a little for his benefit.

"But you've hardly ever seen each other right?" he asked incredulously.

"We've talked on the phone a lot dad," Bella answered a little embarrassed.

"I see," Charlie said thoughtfully. _I wonder how often. No wait, I don't want to know._

I chuckled softly, trying to pass it off as a cough, I couldn't afford to be rude right now.

"But Edward and I have become really close over that time and we feel very strongly about each other," Bella said softly looking at me for support, I gave her my best smile and she smiled back tentatively.

"I see," Charlie said again. "Well, I'm happy to finally be introduced," he continued a little jokingly then.

"I haven't met his family yet either, well just his sister when I met Edward, but we just haven't had the time to be properly introduced," Bella ensured Charlie.

"Alright," he gave in.

From then on the hard conversation was over and we just spent the rest of the afternoon getting to know each other. Bella was fully aware of my human façade and the story we told everyone who wasn't in the loop and she played her part perfectly, filling in my gaps whenever she could and just happily partaking in the conversation. It seemed like she was relieved that she had finally introduced me to her father and I couldn't be happier to hear that he thought I seemed suitable for her through his thoughts. I had never needed anyone's approval aside from my family's before but I noticed that I had indeed been a little worried about this the moment Bella and I became serious. I had been raised to be perfectly polite at all times and traditionally the father of the girl of your desire was the most important person to have on your side so I was happy that things were going in that right direction.

I had to leave when Bella and Charlie were going to have their family dinner but before I left I had to promise Bella I would be back in her room when Charlie would be asleep, it wasn't a promise that needed long consideration since there was no where I would rather be.

The family had gone out hunting since they would all be around Bella the entire day tomorrow and we didn't want anything to stand in the way of a perfect day. Alice had been preparing the entire event for several weeks already and nobody wanted to cross her on anything so they all graciously accepted the terms Alice had stated, including a hunt even though it was unnecessary.

"I'm a little scared about tomorrow," Bella admitted softly when we were laying in her bed.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure they won't hurt you," I promised.

"That's not what I'm worried about silly," Bella said a little surprised.

"What is it then?"

"What if they don't like me?" she asked a little ashamed.

"Of course they'll like you, I can't believe you chose _that_ to worry about!" I rolled my eyes at her before smiling at her in adoration.

"I hope so," she murmured softly before falling asleep.

The next morning Bella woke up early.

"You're still here!" she said enthusiastically.

"I was under the impression that you wanted me to stay, if I was wrong I apologize, I can leave if you want to," I said teasingly, knowing full well she was happy to see me.

"No!" she exclaimed horrified.

"Good," I smirked before kissing her. "I should really leave though, we said I would pick you up in two hours and you need to get ready and I can't very well show up here in the same clothes I was wearing yesterday now can I?" I said smilingly.

"I guess," Bella said reluctantly. "Can't you stay for another half an hour?" she begged.

"Well, Alice will be mad that I didn't spend an appropriate amount of time on my appearance and that I didn't allow you enough time either but I guess I'll just have to face her wrath when I get home for that," I said before hugging Bella close to me.

Half an hour still wasn't enough time for me to be with Bella, I wanted to stay like this for an eternity but we simply had other obligations so we both said goodbye reluctantly before both getting ready for the day.

Luckily Alice was too busy with the preparations to notice my tardiness and I quickly made my way to my room to get dressed in the clothes Alice had picked out for me. Black trousers with a black blouse, luckily she didn't require for us to wear ties because this was already too dressed up for my taste. It was just going to be our family after all.

"I want to make a good impression on Bella," Alice had said when I had complained about the clothes a couple of days ago and she hadn't given in an inch.

Alice came into the door the moment I was getting ready to leave. She was singing some song in her head that I didn't know and I couldn't help but feel suspicious, it never took her that much focus when she was really just singing, she was analyzing every single lyric and focusing on every word of it. I raised my eyebrow at her suspiciously but she just shrugged and danced past me. I guess I would just have to bother her about it later, right now I had somewhere else to be.

I made my way to Bella's house quickly and I could see Charlie making his way to his car the moment I arrived.

"Good morning sir," I greeted him politely.

"Hi there Edward, have a good time today," he replied kindly.

"Thank you, it's just going to be a day with my family, I promise I'll have her back at ten," I said solemnly.

"That's fine boy, I won't be back before then either," he said before getting in his car and waving me goodbye.

Bella was wearing a stunning blue cocktail dress and I wondered if Alice had something to do with it. It didn't take long for me to find out because the moment Bella noticed my gaze she blushed.

"Alice came here not long after you left and she gave me the dress. Do you like it?" she asked shyly.

"You look great!" I replied appreciatively. I would have to thank the little pixie for this later, at least she saved Bella the worry of what she should wear. "Ready to go?" I asked after placing my lips on hers for a brief moment.

"Yes," she replied a little shakily. "I think so," she added and I couldn't help but laugh a little.

"They'll love you," I reassured her and she smiled back at me gratefully.

We made our way to my home quickly and the moment we entered the door I could hear the excited thoughts coming from the living room.

"They're in the living room, all very eager to meet you," I told her softly and she grasped my hand nervously. I squeezed it gently before leading her to the family area.

"Everyone, this is Bella, Bella, this is my family," I made the introductions.

_She's lovely Edward!_ I heard my mother think enthusiastically before walking up to Bella to pull her in for a hug.

I looked at my mother in shock and expected Bella to be really uncomfortable but she hugged my mother back and stared up at me happily. I smiled back and decided to loosen up a little.

"It's nice to _finally_ meet you Bella, I'm Esme, Edward's mother for all intents and purposes," Esme introduced herself after releasing Bella from the hug. "You have no idea how happy it makes me that Edward found you." I could tell from the sound in her voice that my mother would have tears in her eyes if that would have been possible.

"Thank you, I'm glad he found me too," Bella replied while smiling up at Esme.

_I like her already._ Esme thought sweetly and I nodded my head at her in agreement.

"Hello Bella, I'm Carlisle, Edward's father," Carlisle said while shaking Bella's hand. "Welcome to the family," he added jokingly and Bella blushed heavily.

_She blushes easily doesn't she? _Emmett asked with a smile on his face. I could tell he was barely able to control himself, he was eager to meet Bella.

I rolled my eyes at my brother, causing him to let out a laugh that he was trying to pass off as a cough but Bella caught on and raised her eyebrow at me in surprise.

"Don't mind him," I whispered, pretending he wouldn't be able to hear it that way. "He's on vacation from the mental institution and frankly we're all waiting for him to go back again," I added jokingly.

Bella laughed at my joke and the rest of the family quickly joined in when Emmett muttered "Hey!".

"Bella, it's good to finally see you, my brother has been talking about nothing else, quite frankly I wasn't sure he hadn't made you up entirely since we had never met you but clearly you're real, I can't believe you can actually stand that smug jerk," Emmett said while walking forward to officially meet Bella, getting back at me for my comment. I couldn't be bothered, Bella smiled and I could tell from Emmett's thoughts that he actually was really excited to meet Bella and that he was genuinely happy for me that I had finally found someone although he would never admit it out loud. "I'm Emmett, Edward's big brother," he continued the introduction.

But instead of extending his hand towards Bella he surprised everyone, including me, by pulling her in for a hug and spinning her around like she was some sort of doll. Bella giggled and when Emmett had finally put her down she responded. "It's nice to meet you too Emmett, I've heard a lot about you too," she said jokingly.

"All good things I'm sure," Emmett replied mock innocently before stepping back to let the rest make their introductions.

"Bella, I've been dying to introduce you to the love of my life," Alice said enthusiastically while tugging Jasper forward to meet Bella. "This is Jasper," she announced.

"Hi there," Jasper said in his southern accent while keeping his distance from Bella.

"It's nice to meet you Jasper," Bella said nicely. I had explained Jasper's situation to her, that he was the newest to our way of life and he still sometimes had trouble with it all. I told her that she didn't have to worry but that that would be the reason if he seemed a little distant towards her.

"I guess I'm the only one left now then," Rosalie said while she stepped forward. "I'm Rosalie, Edward's sister and the girl who is supposed to make sure Emmett behaves, sorry if that didn't quite work out as planned," Rosalie said while winking at Bella.

Bella smiled back at Rosalie.

The afternoon passed by quickly and it was very enjoyable to see Bella interact with my family. She took Emmett's teasing easily and even began teasing him back at some point, to great enjoyment of Emmett and the rest of the family.

Alice had made us watch all three High School Musicals. It was a family tradition for Alice to pick out movies for us to watch at Christmas. We weren't really big on gift-giving since we all already had everything we wanted so we had decided on this tradition so we would at least spend some time together as a family. Unfortunately for all the guys in the family Alice always decided on the worst girly movies she could find and somehow the High School Musical trilogy was a big favorite.

"I'm sorry she made you watch this," I whispered in Bella's ear as she was leaning against me and we were watching the third movie.

"It's alright, I love these movies!" Bella said enthusiastically.

Alice threw a pillow at my head, trying to silence me, while sticking out her tongue smugly.

"Told you so," she said before refocusing on the movie.

"I love the songs," Bella said softly at a certain point.

"They aren't all bad," I admitted. "This one is actually quite appropriate," I said softly as Troy and Gabriella, two of the main characters of the movie, started to sing.

_Right here, Right now  
I'm looking at you  
and my heart loves the view  
Cause you mean everything_

Bella looked into my eyes and kissed me on my lips as she realized what I meant. She leaned against me further and hugged herself close to me as we watched the rest of the song and the rest of the movie.

"I love you," I whispered softly in her ear as the song ended and I could see a tear in her eye as she nodded her head in agreement.

Esme and Alice had cooked Bella a huge Christmas dinner and I could tell that Bella felt incredibly uncomfortable as we were all sitting around the table, watching Bella eat the food that was apparently very tasty.

"Thank you so much for the wonderful day," Bella said as it was time for me to take her home.

She hugged my mother and sisters in goodbye and waved at Emmett, Jasper and my father.

"See you soon?" Emmett asked hopefully and I laughed at the look on his face.

"I'm sure you will," Bella replied smilingly before we walked out of the door.

We were finally alone in my car and I was anxious to hear what she thought of my family.

"I had so much fun today," Bella started. "You have an amazing family, I adore them all," she continued enthusiastically.

"They all loved you too," I said knowingly.

"It was a great day," she sighed as she leaned into my shoulder and breathed in my scent. "Thank you for everything," she murmured.

I just kissed the top of her head in response.

At exactly ten o'clock we reached her house and I walked her to the door.

"Will you stay again tonight?" Bella asked hopefully.

"I'll be back when your father is sound asleep," I promised.

Bella stretched up on her toes and kissed me briefly before going inside. I let out a content sigh before going back to my own house.

My family had enjoyed the day quite a bit and they were all very excited to have finally met Bella. They couldn't wait to see her again and I promised I would invite her over again very soon. I couldn't have been happier with the way things had turned out, it was great. I had been scared that the afternoon would be uncomfortable but it had been the exact opposite and I was grateful beyond words. Right now I had everything I had ever wanted and more, everything I could have ever wished for, it was perfect.

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**A/N: **I hope you all enjoyed reading the chapter as much as I loved writing it :) I'll be back tomorrow with the next chapter as always ;) I always love hearing your thoughts on my stories (or just any other random thoughts as some of you already know ;):P) Hopefully I'll see you all tomorrow :) Xxx Thari


	7. Chapter 7: Joy Of My Life

**A/N: **Well, after some difficulties with my internet and endless cursing at the router on campus and my own normally beloved laptop I'm back with the next chapter :P Unfortunately a day later than I had hoped… Ah well, I hope you all enjoy it :) Thanks so much for all the wonderful reviews, **crazyanniecroc**, **ravenlovestwilight** and **Shirley** you rock my world!

To crazyanniecroc: I'm glad you look forward to the new chapter so much :) Thanks for your review :)

To ravenlovestwilight: I'm glad you and your mom enjoy my story so much :) And as you can see I am posting as soon as I could ;) with internet problems and all a little later than I had hoped… I hope you keep reading and enjoying my story :)

To Shirley: How can you not have seen HSM yet? After all my talking about it? Shame on you sister! :D Nah kidding… As long as you promise to watch them soon :D

Well enjoy the chapter :) It's inspired by "Joy Of My Life" sang by John Fogerty. He's one of my personal favorites when it comes to the singers my dad made me listen to in the car when I was younger and going on a holiday with my parents and my brother :P Anyways I think it's a nice song, although I like most of his songs (personal favorite: tied between Centerfield (yet another baseball song :D), Rambunctious boy and Hot Rod Heart… Come to think of it it's kind of hard to actually pick a favorite, I liked one CD (Blue Moon Swamp) quite a bit when I was in that car (it would be one of the few times I actually put my iPod away and spend some moments interacting with my family :P) and still occasionally listen to it) :D Well… it seems this rambling of mine is becoming a routine, sorry about that :P I'll shut up now and I hope that you haven't fallen asleep or left this story so you can move on to the chapter ;) Enjoy :D

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**Joy Of My Life**

I couldn't be happier that I still had a couple of weeks before Bella would go back to Seattle and we wouldn't see so much of each other anymore. I knew I was going to be incredibly sad when she had to leave again but it was inevitable, I wanted her to finish her education as well.

"Tell me what you're thinking?" Bella asked softly as she caressed my chest.

I had to smile at the question since I had been known to ask her that frequently.

We were laying on Bella's bed, it was late at night and her father was already sound asleep. We had mostly been enjoying each other's company in silence and it was pure bliss.

"I was just thinking how much I enjoy spending this much time together and how sad I am going to be when you have to leave again," I answered truthfully.

"I don't want to go back to Seattle, it's so lonely there now," Bella replied sadly and the tone of her voice made my heart break.

"I know but you don't have to be there for very long anymore," I promised her, kissing the top of her head.

"I still have three and a half years left there!" she exclaimed horrified.

I know that seemed like a long time for humans and normally I was really thinking in terms of five years already but since I had met Bella a month already seemed long to me as well, especially if it was a month away from her.

"It'll be alright," I assured her.

"How? I can't stand only seeing you during Christmas and summer break! It's too hard. I love our phone calls but it's nothing like being with you for real!" she said sadly.

"I know love, but there's nothing we can do about it now, I don't want to stand in the way of your education," I responded just as sadly.

"You won't, you could help me!" she was arguing now.

"Love," I started.

"Please Edward, I can't stand being without you anymore, even though we've only seen each other a short amount of time I still feel like we belong together and I've never felt this way about anyone before you know that!" Every time she confessed her love for me I could feel a sigh in my stomach and happiness filled me completely. But this time it was mixed with sadness as I wanted nothing more than to give her what she wanted while knowing I couldn't.

"Bella, you know I want nothing more than to be with you too," I sighed.

"Then what's the problem?" she challenged.

"It wouldn't be right. Not to mention what your father might think," I said sadly. "He already thinks it's weird that we spent so much time together and are as close as we are, since in his eyes we have only seen each other twice and we're too young to know what love is," I summed up.

I knew I had her when I brought Charlie into the conversation. She wouldn't know what to say to him if I would all of a sudden go live with her in Seattle.

I felt Bella yawning even though she tried to hide it from me.

"You should go to sleep love, we'll talk about it when the time comes alright?" I suggested.

"I don't need to go to sleep," she argued.

I could feel her getting sleepier as she crawled further against me so I wrapped my arms around her and started humming a lullaby. It wasn't long before Bella was asleep and I was alone with my thoughts again.

Three and a half more years. It really was a long time and I didn't know what to do about it all. It made me sad to think about leaving her but I didn't see what other choice I had. I had everything I had ever known before Bella here now, my family. I couldn't just leave them behind either but they wouldn't move to Seattle this soon after moving to Forks. I couldn't do that to them, since I knew how much Esme loved it here, as well as the rest of my family.

But Bella was all I wanted really and it was killing me to have to choose between those two.

The next day I had scheduled a hunting trip with my family and Bella was left to spend some time with her father. She was just as reluctant as I was to leave but since I had already forgotten to feed on numerous occasions since she had been back it wasn't smart to keep ignoring that side of my nature. It would eventually make things dangerous for Bella and that was the last thing I wanted.

I kissed Bella goodbye before jumping out her window early in the morning.

"I'll be back before you know it," I promised her as she reluctantly waved me goodbye.

"Hurry," she whispered.

"It's amazing how much Bella has changed you," Rosalie said softly while the rest of the family was chasing deer.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

I could see her compare the 'before and after pictures' as she called them in her head as if it was some sort of make-over show that the girls loved to watch.

"You never used to be sad or lonely or anything I know that and you always thought you didn't need anyone besides yourself. You were happy of course but when I compare that to the way you are now it's like you were sad and lonely all that time. Now whenever someone mentions Bella to you, you light up like a candle and you start smiling like a lunatic. It's eerie really," Rosalie said jokingly but I knew there was truth to her words.

"She makes me happy," I stated simply.

"We can all see that and you have no idea how happy it makes all of us and especially Esme to see you like this. I have to admit that I had been hoping you and Tanya would get together, she's always shown an interest in you and I never understood why you didn't seem to be interested in her at all. She's sweet, beautiful and kind and she already is family so it would have been easy for the two of you to be together. But now I can see how wrong I was in that, Tanya would never have been able to make you as happy as Bella makes you and although I'm not a big fan of the fact that you're with a human rather than an immortal since it complicates things in so many ways, I can appreciate what she has done and the effect she has on you. But it's not just that, it seems like you have the same effect on her as well, as if the two of you complete each other and it makes me smile to see it. It makes me remember the way Emmett and I were in the beginning of our relationship, although in your case it's a little less destructive I guess," Rosalie said while winking at me, referring to the time Emmett and she spent alone together wrecking every room they were together in.

"Try a lot less destructive," I replied merrily. "But you're right. And I know you've always liked Tanya to be your sister for real, but she was never more than family to me, a cousin, and even though I enjoy her company, it's not the same, not nearly the same, as it is with Bella. And even though we can't really be exactly like you and Emmett, or the rest of our family for that matter, from the beginning of your relationship, since that would mean endangering Bella's life and I could never do that, this is exactly what I need without ever having known I wanted or needed it in the first place," I continued.

"I'm happy for you Edward," Rosalie said before we were joined by the rest of our family again, ready to make our way back home.

I enjoyed my own speed for a moment as I ran towards the cars. Running as fast as I could always helped me clear my mind and just enjoy the moment.

As always I was the first to the cars and I was waiting for the rest to join me. Emmett, having used all of his strength to push himself forward, was the first to join me.

"Hi bro," he greeted me as he came to stand next to me.

"Hi Emmett," I replied.

"So when do we get to see Bella again?" he asked enthusiastically and I couldn't help but smile at his eagerness to see my love again.

Everyone in my family was fond of Bella and they were all happy whenever she would visit, it couldn't have made me any happier than it did and I was grateful that they all had accepted her so easily even though she was not what any of them had had in mind for me.

"Soon," I promised him and he seemed content with that answer.

"You know, if you ever have questions about anything," he started suggestively while wiggling his eyebrows at me.

"Thanks Emmett, I might just take you up on that," I replied boldly and the look on Emmett's face was priceless since he had not seen that coming. Emmett had expected me to get angry with him and throw something at him perhaps, as I probably would have done in the past.

Part of the fun was that I knew that if I really would have questions for Emmett, he'd be more than willing to help me without teasing me, much.

"That's what big brothers are for," Emmett said while shrugging after he had composed himself. "But I know Rosalie thinks you've changed a lot since you've met Bella and I have to say that she's right, you seem a lot happier now," Emmett said seriously.

"I am a lot happier," I answered serenely.

"And that even without all the physical benefits?" Emmett asked incredulously.

I knew he was joking, since even though he and Rose were extremely physical at times, he would be with her no matter what and she made him happy in many other ways as well.

"Yes well can you imagine, before Bella all I had was a family with one extremely obnoxious brother that I had no chance of getting away from, while now I have Bella and I always have a place to go if I don't want to be around you," I answered with a smirk.

Emmett laughed and at that moment we were joined by the others.

"Took you long enough," Emmett said while rolling his eyes at the group.

"We were just enjoying the freedom from you," Alice replied, causing me to laugh and Emmett to pout.

The drive back home didn't take very long and I was surprised to find the red truck I had come to know so well standing outside our house. I looked at Alice in panic, maybe she had seen that something was wrong with Bella but she shrugged, she was just as surprised as I was to see her truck here.

I ran into the house and was immediately hit by her scent, it left me dizzy for a moment but I shook it off and ran towards my room, where her scent was strongest. I could hear her heart beating and the soft sound of her breathing. I could tell that she was asleep and I was afraid to wake her. I heard the John Fogerty CD that I had borrowed from Jasper playing, Bella must have put it on. I smiled as I heard the first lines to the next song.

_I tiptoed in the room  
I know you got to have your rest_

How appropriate.

I tried to keep it down but somehow Bella still woke up.

"Hi there," she said sleepily.

"Hello love," I replied softly.

"I hope you don't mind that I'm here," she continued.

"Not at all, is everything alright?" I asked, worried again.

"I'm fine," she assured me. "I just missed you and after the entire day with my father I thought I could come here and surprise you when you got back from your hunting trip. I told my father that I was sleeping over at Alice's, he was all too eager to believe that so he wished me a good time. I hope you're not mad," she explained while blushing a little.

This girl was the sweetest, most loving person I had ever met and it never stopped amazing me that I was allowed to call her mine. I quickly made my way to the bed she was occupying. We had bought that bed a few days ago, so it would be a little more comfortable for Bella to be here.

I held Bella in my arms and pressed my lips to hers softly.

We both enjoyed each others' company while we listened to the music and I smiled when I heard the chorus.

"I couldn't have timed it better, the music is perfect," I said smilingly.

_Long as I have you  
I'll treasure each and every day  
Just take me by the hand  
I am the luckiest man alive  
And did I tell you baby  
You are the joy of my life_

"You make my life special Bella," I whispered in her ear before placing kisses all along her cheek and neck.

"I love you more than anything in this world," she replied softly.

Nothing made me happier than moments like these. As Bella slowly fell deeper into slumber I thought about how blessed I truly was. I had never actually been happy about who, or rather what, I was and although I didn't resent Carlisle for needing companionship and finding that through creating me I wasn't particularly happy that my life had been expanded indefinitely. I had lost my soul the day of my transformation and even though I know I would have died otherwise I had never been sure which would have been the better option of the two.

Until now that is. Now that I was holding the most beautiful creature in the whole world in my arms and this creature loved me I knew that this was so many times better than it would have been if I died of the Spanish Influenza back then. I actually started to believe there was a reason for my creation, and she was it. I wasn't quick to jump to the conclusion that there was a reason for everything but if I could hold Bella for eternity I would definitely have to come back to that particular issue.

I shouldn't forget to thank Carlisle for creating me, otherwise I would have never had love and even though he wouldn't ever admit it out loud, he always felt guilty for creating me since I had never found a mate like the rest of my family had. I would have to make sure to free him of his guilt, since it was pointless now, I had a mate and with that a reason for living, if that was what this was.

I spent the hours of the night staring at Bella, softly stroking her cheek or her back, marveling over her beauty and the peacefulness of her sleep. I never wanted to leave her side again. I knew that now. The only thing to do for me was to discuss it with my family. I would always love my family and they will always be a part of me but I could have distance between us, I couldn't live if I'd have to stay away from Bella for another three and a half years. I knew that her first year at university would be critical so I would have to endure at least another half a year without her, talking over the phone like we've been doing this last semester, but then I would make sure I can be with her the rest of the time. Perhaps enroll at the same university and buy a house there. Whether or not Bella and I would live together then will be up to her, but if she would be willing I knew I had to do it properly, since that was the way I was raised, by all my parents.

I planned out my future as much as I could without needing Bella's involvement. Whether or not she was going to accept my proposal would be up to her entirely, I would respect her decision either way.

_I can't believe you're going to leave us._ Alice's thoughts hit me from the hallway. I didn't want to leave Bella's side right now, she was so peaceful.

_Don't worry, I don't require you to come talk to me straight away, I can see you want to stay with Bella right now and she should sleep. Just hear me out though, I can't believe you're leaving us and I will miss you terribly but I'm happy for you and I know it'll all work out just fine as long as you visit _often_! I'll make sure Bella makes you come back to us often! I'm afraid Esme will be heartbroken though but she has half a year to prepare for it mentally and I'm sure she'll be just as happy for you as the rest of us will be. I'm glad you found her Edward, the two of you belong together. _Alice's thoughts touched me deeply and I wanted to go outside and hug my sister.

_Don't, she'll wake up, but thanks for the gesture. I'll leave you alone now, we'll talk soon._ She promised and I saw her blow me a kiss.

I smiled. It was going to be difficult to leave my family after all this time but I knew I had to do it and they would all support me. Alice's reassurance of that fact made it all just a little easier for me and I could enjoy the rest of the night just staring at Bella and enjoying her company. _Joy of my life indeed. _I thought with a smile.

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**A/N:** I hope you liked all the family moments in this chapter :) I always like hearing your thoughts/suggestions/comments :) See you tonight (since I was a day late with uploading:P) :) If my internet is willing that is… :D Xxx Thari


	8. Chapter 8: Nothing On You

**A/N: **Well, unfortunately I couldn't upload last night so I'm uploading now, although I don't think I'll be able to upload another chapter today so there might be a little bit more time between the two chapters, sorry about that :) Thanks for all the sweet reviews **Raven's twimom**, **Emma-MasenCullen**, **brittney101** and **Shirley**.

To Raven's twimom: Thanks so much for the sweet review :) I'm really glad you liked the previous chapter so much.

To Emma-MasenCullen: It's alright that you haven't reviewed ;) I'm glad you like my chapters :)

To brittney101: I'm glad I could brighten up your morning :)

To Shirley: Sorry I couldn't make you able to read two chapters in 1 day :( Thanks for the awesome review as always! :)

Well, here's chapter 8, enjoy and let me know what you think :)

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**Nothing On You**

Tonight would be New Year's Eve. Alice had taken the girls, including Bella, out on a shopping spree, since it wouldn't really be a new year without new clothes as Alice pointed out on numerous occasions. She had left the men in charge of decorations, big mistake of course since none of us were looking forward to a yelling Alice after she discovered that we hadn't done it exactly right.

We would get to the decorating in time, but for now the only thing completely decorated was Emmett. We had taken all the decorations Alice had given us to add to the Christmas decoration in honor of the new year and hung it around Emmett's neck, who was now parading around the living room proudly showing off _his_ new clothes. Accompanied by loud laughter of Jasper, Carlisle and myself.

"The girls will be back in a few hours, we should really get going, since everything has to be exactly right," Jasper said seriously after a while.

"You're right," we all muttered reluctantly.

So we spent the rest of the afternoon following Alice's every instruction to the letter and for as far as we were concerned it looked perfect.

Not long after we had decided we were done the doorbell rang, I was surprised to find that it wasn't the girls ringing the doorbell but our cousins from Alaska. We hadn't expected them until much later today.

"Come in," Carlisle greeted Tanya, Kate, Irina, Carmen and Eleazar happily. "It's good to see you again."

"As it is to see you," Tanya said lovingly while hugging Carlisle.

It didn't take them long to reach the living room and they were surprised to find it without Alice and the girls.

"They went shopping, last minute new year's clothes or something," I answered their unspoken questions while shrugging indifferently.

"Oh what a wonderful idea, why didn't we think of that," Tanya said immediately. "Ah well that will have to wait, it has been far too long since we've seen each other," she continued.

After the greetings were all done we sat down to talk about what we have all been up to the past year, since last New Year's had been the last time we had seen our cousins, it was a shame really, we should definitely visit more often in the future.

"Alice told me you have mated?" Tanya asked me a little ruefully.

"She's correct," I answered politely.

"Well, when do we get to meet her?" Tanya pressed.

"She'll be here tonight," I assured her.

"She must be one amazing vampire to steal your heart away," Tanya murmured sadly.

"I guess Alice hasn't told you everything then?" I replied politely.

"What do you mean?"

"My Bella isn't a vampire," I stated simply.

"What?" Tanya exclaimed sounding horrified. "You fell in love with a human?"

"Yes, strange right? I guess now I finally see what you see in all those human men you entertain yourself with on occasion," I replied with a smile.

Tanya harrumphed, unable to think of anything else to say. She was torn. I had always known Tanya had feelings for me more than just feelings between two relatives, and I knew it bothered her that I was one of the few persons on the whole earth that could resist her lure. But I had always been polite at keeping her at a distance and never gave her any impression that I was ever going to change my mind about her. However, that hadn't stopped her from secretly hoping I would come around and fall head over heels for her.

Tanya was struggling to accept the fact that Alice had been right and that I was indeed taken already, she was eager to meet Bella to find out what I had found so appealing about her in the first place.

For a moment I was afraid that the situation between Tanya and Bella was going to be awfully uncomfortable and that Tanya would be utterly rude to her. But then something changed in Tanya's mind and she decided to accept things as they were and have an open mind towards Bella. She would judge in silence and give her an honest chance.

"Thank you," I said to Tanya sincerely.

_I'll do my best but I can't promise anything Edward_. Tanya replied silently.

I nodded my head in understanding.

Not much later the girls got back from their shopping trip, already dressed in their newly acquired clothing. I wondered where they had changed but guessed that I probably was better off not knowing. Alice danced forward happily to greet Tanya and the rest of our cousins. Esme and Rosalie quickly followed. Bella awkwardly shuffled to my side and I placed my arm around her, guiding her slowly to our company.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet my Bella, Bella, these are my cousins," I said generally, giving each of them the opportunity to introduce themselves.

"As much related as our kind can be really," Eleazar said with a smile while approaching Bella. "I'm Eleazar and this is my mate Carmen," he said while shaking Bella's hand.

"It's nice to meet you," Bella replied politely.

"We're happy to finally meet you, it's taken Edward far too long to find someone," Carmen said happily while embracing Bella.

Bella was used to being hugged by vampires by now but I could tell that she still felt a little uncomfortable, I assumed it was just because she didn't know my relatives very well. But as always with Bella, I couldn't be certain.

"Indeed it has," Irina and Kate agreed as they walked forward to meet Bella. They too hugged Bella after introducing themselves and Bella seemed to relax a little more with each new introduction.

Or so it seemed…

"Bella, what a pleasure to meet you, I'm Tanya," Tanya said lovingly while walking towards Bella.

I could see Bella's shoulders tense and her eyes widen, her heart rate went up and she clenched the one hand that was still holding mine tightly. I wonder what had happened and I was ready to step in and ask Bella.

_It seems my reputation has already proceeded me. _Tanya thought with a hint of sadness.

I looked at Alice questioningly and she smiled apologetically. _Guilty, sorry Edward, I had to tell her about our cousins, since she was going to meet them soon but after she had asked some basic questions about their appearances and their lifestyle, she started asking about our relationship with them and I told her that we were very close and that you at one point stayed with the Denali sisters when you didn't feel like being around all the couples in our family. She asked if anything ever happened between them, since she had assumed that they were just as beautiful as we are. _I let out a low hiss at my sister. _I assured her nothing had happened and that you weren't interested in any of them!_ Alice continued quickly. _But then she asked if any had shown an interest in you and I told her about Tanya, I'm sorry._

I nodded quickly at Alice, letting her know that it was going to be okay. Then I turned my attention back to Tanya and Bella, they were standing face to face and Bella was still holding on to my hand as if her life depended on it. I squeezed her hand gently, trying to let her know that she was the only one for me but I couldn't convince her entirely until we were alone so that would have to wait.

"It's nice to meet you too," Bella said shyly.

"I guess you've already heard stories about us, and me in particular?" Tanya questioned.

"Alice told me some things," Bella admitted.

"Nothing embarrassing I hope?" Tanya said jokingly while raising her eyebrows at Alice.

"Don't worry, I didn't tell her _everything_," Alice said jokingly and I saw flashes of the passes Tanya had made at me over the years through Alice's mind.

"Ah well, that's all in the past," Tanya said while shrugging. "I can't wait to get to know you better Bella," Tanya continued. "It takes a very special girl to steal our Edward's heart I presume," she said with a wink and I was almost certain I could feel Bella flinch just slightly.

I put my arm around Bella and guided her towards the couch. I wanted her to get along with my family but I knew it wasn't going to be easy for her after Alice had told her about Tanya. I wished I could reassure her that I only had eyes for her but it wouldn't be polite right now.

So I just pulled Bella close and squeezed her shoulders gently before putting her in my lap, arranging us in a way that was perhaps a little inappropriate in other company but my family had seen and done worse things in company so they wouldn't think anything of it. I was just hoping this would comfort Bella a little. She did seem to relax more and I was glad.

I carefully monitored everyone's thoughts and I wished that Bella wasn't immune to my gift, what I wouldn't give to be able to see into her mind right now, to know how she felt.

"So, how did the two of you meet?" Carmen asked.

I was prepared to answer but Bella surprised me as she started telling our story. The others laughed and asked her questions about her school afterwards. Bella seemed more relaxed now as she carried on the conversation with my family.

_I got to hand it to you Edward, she is lovely indeed._ Tanya's thoughts caught me by surprise.

After the conversation took off I actually forgot to monitor the thoughts of my relatives and just enjoyed the atmosphere, I hadn't been paying close attention to Tanya anymore since she had been participating happily in the conversation as well, asking Bella questions and answering her questions in return.

I nodded quickly in acknowledgment and smiled at my cousin. She smiled back at me shortly before continuing her line of questioning.

The evening passed by quickly and before anyone realized it was almost midnight. Alice was the first to notice so she got up, effectively silencing everyone in the process. "If we keep going at this rate we'll miss the countdown," she said seriously.

The rest of us just looked at her in confusion, what was another year to us immortals?

"I'm just saying, since this is our first New Year's with Bella, I want to do it right! I know we haven't really celebrated the start of another new year in the past but I do want to at least acknowledge it properly this time so we're going to count down and that's that," Alice said in her most final tone and I couldn't help but laugh at her determination.

"Don't you laugh at me Edward Cullen!" Alice shot at me in mock anger. "It's your fault to begin with," she said while sticking out her tongue.

"Crazy little pixie," I muttered under my breath, earning the laughs of my family members.

Ten seconds before the start of the new year Alice started counting down excitedly, staring at everyone long enough to get us to join quickly. We all rose from our seats and exactly 12 o'clock I picked up Bella, cradled her to my chest and kissed her passionately. "Happy New Year love," I whispered sweetly.

The smile I got in return from Bella was radiant, she had her arms around my neck and she seemed a little dizzy, not that I was much better off but at least I hid it better, but she was smiling at me as if she was seeing me again for the first time. "Happy New Year," she replied happily.

Then we were both pulled apart. Eleazar had gotten a hold of Bella and was wishing her a happy new year as well and Esme was kissing my cheeks at the same time. Everyone wished each other a happy new year exactly in the way Alice had envisioned it, I could tell from the smile on her face and the contentment in her thoughts.

"Happy New Year sis," I said lovingly before kissing the cheeks of the little pixie.

"You too Edward, I'm sure it's going to be a great year for you," she said knowingly and I just nodded my head, hoping she was going to be right.

Across the room I could see Emmett twirling Bella around like she was some kind of ragdoll. It was a funny sight but I was a little worried about how breakable Bella really was. Although it didn't seem like Emmett was hurting her from the judgment of her squeals and laughter.

It was a little uncomfortable for me to watch Bella and Tanya hug each other but they seemed perfectly at ease and happy as they laughed and chatted a little more. All in all it was a great night but I couldn't wait to be alone with my Bella again.

"Ready to go?" I asked after a few hours and a few yawns from Bella's side.

"Yes," she said sleepily and I guided her upstairs to my room.

"Don't be too loud," Emmett called after us with a huge grin and I just laughed back at him.

"We'll do our best," Bella replied to my surprise and I looked over at her in shock. She was smiling smugly back at me and the feeling of pride that washed over me was intense. I was happy she was so comfortable around my family.

Emmett just snickered at my love's comment and the rest of the family laughed before wishing us both a good night.

"That was fun," Bella said sleepily when we were in bed together.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," I replied sincerely.

"Your cousins are nice, I still don't get it though," she said sounding a little frustrated.

"What don't you get love?" I asked.

"Well, I don't get what you're doing with me when someone as gorgeous as Tanya has been chasing you in the past!" she said as if that was obvious.

"I have never been interested in Tanya, sure she's beautiful in her own way but she's never been more than just family to me," I replied while shrugging.

"I just don't get it," she said simply.

"Well, you don't see yourself clearly," I responded with a smile.

"Right," she muttered.

"Bella, love, I have never met anyone as extraordinary as you or as beautiful as you are and I am so very blessed that you love me back, it's more than I could have ever wished for. You never cease to amaze me and that doesn't happen very often, I love you with all my heart and I will always love you that way," I promised her solemnly.

"Thank you," she replied while kissing my lips briefly.

"There's something I want to give you, don't worry it's not expensive," I tried to assure her with a smile, I didn't understand why she needed to make a big deal out of me buying her presents but she seemed dead set against it. "But I've bought it for you a while back and I've been waiting for the right time to give it to you, the first song on that album explains it all very clearly why you don't have to be afraid of anyone coming between us, that just won't happen!" I said while walking towards my desk and getting the CD I had bought for her.

"Thank you," she said after she had opened the present. She put on the first song and smiled as she read the title.

_Beautiful girls all over the world  
I could be chasing but my time would be wasted  
They got nothing on you, baby  
Nothing on you, baby  
_

"Do you understand now?" I asked after a while.

"I think so," she said carefully. "So you love me?" she asked with a smile.

I listened to the next part of the song and smiled at the lyrics and how true they really were.

_Hands down there will never be another one  
I've been around and I've never seen another one  
Cause your style they ain't really got nothing on_

"More than anything in the whole world!" I replied before hugging her close to my body and covering her in kisses. My beautiful Bella. There really wasn't a girl in the world that could hold a candle to this wonderful creature. I couldn't have wished for a better person to fall in love with and I was eternally grateful that she loved me back the way she did. I didn't deserve her love and it wasn't fair that I had her love but she seemed content in being with me so I wasn't complaining, this girl was perfect and if I was blessed enough to have her forever than there was nothing in the world I could wish for anymore.

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**A/N: **Well that was it :) I hope you liked my version of New Year's :) I'll be back tomorrow with the next fluffy chapter :) Xxx Thari


	9. Chapter 9: To Love A Woman

**A/N: **Here we are again, another day and working internet, life is good :D Thanks so much for all the sweet reviews, **Shirley**, **Layel.C**, **Raven's twimom** and **Emma-MasenCullen**, you guys are the greatest! :D

To Shirley: I had quite a mental image when I wrote Emmett all decorated :D thought you might like it ;) I wanted to write Tanya a bit nicer, she has a tough life and to be written as the bitch every time is just sad for her :P I mean who can blame her for falling for Edward? :P As always, thanks a million! :D

Well, here's the next chapter, I was a bit "melig" as we call it in Dutch (I was laughing extensively and couldn't stop basically…:P) It kind of shows in this coming chapter so I'm sorry about that ;) I hope you'll enjoy it all the same, if you don't however, just forget I wrote it and pretend it never existed when reading the other chapters ;) Let me know what you thought all the same :)

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**To Love A Woman**

Bella's fall semester passed by agonizingly slowly and when it was finally summer break for her I couldn't wait to see her. So I impulsively jumped in my car and drove all the way to Seattle to pick her up.

"Edward? What are you doing here?" she exclaimed enthusiastically while throwing herself into my arms.

_Ah to finally hold her again._

I breathed in her scent and was momentarily lost in its intensity. I had missed her so much! Even though we spoke every day and more than occasionally twice a day or even three times it still wasn't the same as holding her in my arms and hugging her as close to my body as laws of physics would allow.

"I came to pick you up love," I said simply. "I couldn't wait another couple of hours before I would see you again, I missed you entirely too much. You should ask my family, I've been driving them crazy for the past couple of… well weeks really," I said a little embarrassed.

"I've missed you too," she whispered softly as she buried her face in my chest.

I couldn't stand to not see her face right now so I placed my hand under her chin and lifted her softly to my lips. The kiss started out sweet but quickly turned into a longing, passionate kiss in which she threw her arms around my neck and I held her waist while I lifted her to hold her as close as possible and give me easier access to her mouth.

By the time we released each other we were both panting.

"Well, talk about your warm welcome," Bella said jokingly while she guided me into her room.

Most of her belongings were in a bag on her bed. She wouldn't be returning here until next semester, or if I had my way never again. I was hoping Bella would want to live with me in Seattle, we could buy a house near campus and stay there instead of the dorm she had been occupying for the past year.

I smiled as I eagerly picked up her bag and started walking towards the car. "What are we going to do with my truck? There's no way that old thing can keep up with your Volvo, even if you drive _normally_," she said thoughtfully.

"As you can see I haven't really thought this whole thing through," I admitted a little ashamed.

"And that's why I'm here, so you lovebirds can have some quality time in your car," Alice's voice came from behind me. I had been too preoccupied with Bella to even notice that she was here so she startled me. "Ha! That's a first," Alice said humorously.

"Very funny Alice, but what are you talking about?" I asked a little ashamed.

"Well, I saw that the truck was going to be an issue and I couldn't really stand the sight of Bella driving in her truck alone in the evening to try and keep up with Edward, so I asked Jasper to drop me off here so I could drive the truck home," Alice said triumphantly. _You owe me big time for this by the way! Have you seen how fast that thing goes?_ Alice added to me.

I just nodded in my understanding and I hugged her to show her how much I appreciated her right now. I know Alice was dying to get a new car and I had seen an auto show recently in which they showed the newest model that Porsche had built, maybe in yellow?

_That'll do._ Alice said smugly but I could tell that she was thrilled by the prospect of her new 'baby' as she already called it in her mind.

I just smiled at her in response.

"Thank you Alice," Bella said with a shy smile.

"What are sisters for?" Alice replied while shrugging.

Bella's smile broadened at Alice's comment. It made me hopeful that one day, hopefully soon, she would want to officially be Alice's sister, or rather sister-in-law. My heart made a small leap at the thought of Bella as my wife, as it has done every other time I had thought of it.

During our drive home Bella didn't say much, she seemed content just laying against my shoulder and staring out the window. I didn't want to interrupt her peacefulness so I didn't speak either.

"We're here love," I said softly as I entered her father's driveway.

"Oh Charlie! I didn't even think how my dad was going to react when he saw me arrive without the truck, what's he going to think?" she asked panicky.

"Relax love, he'll be far too happy to see you again, he won't think twice about the truck and by the time he will think about it it'll be there, I think Alice has considered running with the truck above her head to speed things along," I added only half jokingly.

"Haha very funny, alright then if you say so," Bella murmured before stepping into the house.

I wanted to give her some privacy with her father so I waited outside. But Bella seemed to have other plans with me.

"Are you coming or what?" she asked a little irritated.

I followed her inside and nervously waited at the entrance of the living room, where Charlie was watching a baseball game.

"Hi dad," Bella said enthusiastically, startling her unsuspecting father slightly.

"Bella? I didn't expect you home until much later today!" he said happily before jumping out if his chair and grabbing Bella.

"Yeah, Edward drives like a maniac," Bella said jokingly but glaring at me nonetheless.

That girl was unbelievable, she's not afraid to be in a house full of vampires or to even kiss and hug a vampire but driving, sure _that_ scares her!

I just rolled my eyes at her comment. _Silly girl_.

After two hours of catching up with Charlie and having dinner Bella thought it was time to go to my family, since she had missed them terribly too. I was happy that she felt so strongly about my family, she loved each and every one of them and I was thrilled.

My family also absolutely adored her and Alice wouldn't be Alice if she wouldn't use any excuse to dress the house, and people in the house, up for a party, in this case it would just be us Cullens though.

But we arrived at the house and I knew everyone was waiting for us in the living room. Alice had modestly decorated the trees on our driveway with lights and I knew from the thoughts of the rest of my family that the inside of the house wasn't in a much better shape.

"What's this?" Bella asked curiously when she noticed the lights.

"Alice being Alice," I said while shrugging.

"What did she do?" Bella was suspicious now.

"Don't worry love, it's just the family," I assured her as I guided her towards the door.

"SURPRISE!" Alice yelled enthusiastically and from the glare she was giving the rest of the family it had been her intention that all of them would have said it simultaneously.

"Surprise," the rest muttered softly after they noticed Alice deathglare.

There was a huge banner hanging over their heads saying "Welcome home Bella" as if she had gone away for years to some far away country rather than just a semester in Seattle.

"Glad to have you home," Alice said lovingly before hugging Bella.

"Thanks, it's good to see you all again," Bella muttered a little shyly.

"I'm just glad she didn't make us wear hats," Emmett mumbled with a glare in Alice's direction.

"Next time," Alice promised evilly.

"Hi little sis," Emmett continued as if Alice hadn't said anything. He picked Bella up for one of his hugs and he had her giggling in no time at all.

"Hi Em," Bella greeted him adoringly after she had regained her breath.

After the rounds of greeting we all went to sit on the couch and it was time for presents. I wasn't one for the parties like Alice but I could never resist an excuse to buy Bella a gift, especially when it was going to be hard for her to resist the gift when she would allow the rest of my family members to give her gifts as well.

"Why don't we start?" Esme suggested while motioning for Carlisle to get up with her. "This is from Carlisle and me, we're glad you're home again Bella, we've all missed you," she said sweetly while the two of them walked forward to give Bella their gift.

Bella saw the tickets and gasped. "This is way too much!" she exclaimed in shock.

"Don't be silly Bella!"

"What is it?" Emmett asked, clearly not in the loop. I laughed. "What?" he asked defensively. "We don't _all_ have your powers Edward!" he said with a pout and I just rolled my eyes at him.

"It's two plane tickets to New York and a hotel voucher," Bella said, keeping the peace. Bella studied the tickets intently for a second. "Two weeks?" she asked incredibly. "That's insane! It's way too much I can't accept this!" she said desperately.

"I won't take no for an answer Bella," Esme said rather sternly but with a smile.

"Trust me love, when Esme says she won't take no, you're not going to win," I said conspiringly.

"Thank you," Bella choked out in defeat.

"You're welcome!" Esme replied happily.

"I'm next!" Alice said excitedly.

She handed Bella a small envelope.

"Ah, an envelope, I'm sure that's all Bella has ever dreamed of," Emmett said jokingly while ducking a pillow Alice had aimed at his head.

"Well, open it!" Alice ordered Bella impatiently.

Bella cautiously opened the envelope to find a note in Alice's handwriting.

"Voucher for one shopping trip for Alice," Bella read out loud. I laughed at the grimace on her face, she didn't care for shopping very much and Alice knew it but I also knew the thought behind it all and it wasn't Alice's intention to bring Bella along at all. Bella looked at Alice in confusion when she read the note again. "What do you mean _for_ Alice?" she asked curiously.

"Well, I know how much you hate shopping," Alice said with a grimace. "So, my gift to you is _not_ shopping, I'll do the shopping for you so you don't have to worry about what to buy for New York," Alice said proudly.

"That's great Alice! Nothing too fancy though right?" Bella asked nervously.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing, trust me," Alice said with a wink and I could see all the dresses she was planning to buy for Bella.

"She's going to buy me _a lot_ isn't she?" Bella whispered to me nervously, knowing full well Alice could hear it. This earned her a big round of laughter from the entire family and I just nodded my head in affirmation.

"Right," she muttered, knowing that it was futile to resist Alice anyway.

"Well, I didn't know that I was supposed to get you anything really, I thought my presence at this party would be enough… But according to Alice it isn't," Emmett said while theatrically rolling his eyes. Bella giggled and Alice glared at him before smacking him on the back of his head. "Ouch!" Emmett said while ducking another blow from Alice. "Anyway, before the pixie so rudely interrupted I was saying that Rose and I have a gift for you as well," Emmett said while handing Bella a package.

Emmett and Rosalie had bought Bella the Lonely Planet guide to New York and I could see how much Bella appreciate a gift that was, in her eyes, reasonably priced. Little did she know that this was the latest edition and it wasn't technically for sale yet. I wasn't going to fill her in on that little detail.

"Thank you, I love it," she said sincerely while hugging Rose and Emmett.

"I'm glad, I wanted to give you a Kama Sutra book but Rose didn't think that would be appropriate," Emmett said before his booming laughter filled the room. Carlisle muffled his laughter away, earning a strong poke in the ribs by Esme and the same was true for Jasper, who was currently hurrying to the other side of the room to avoid Alice's never missing aim of the pillows. Rosalie hissed loudly at Emmett and I gave him a glare.

Bella was bright red for a moment and she didn't know what to say, I wanted to punch my brother for embarrassing my love like that but before I could Bella spoke up. "Hmmm, maybe you can give me that for my birthday then? Although I guess there's nothing in the book that you couldn't explain to me yourself so why spend money?" Bella challenged and it was Emmett who was speechless this time.

None of my family members could hold back their laughter this time and even Emmett joined in eventually.

"Good one," he said with a grin, I could see he was proud beyond words that Bella had made that joke and he had nothing bad to say from then on.

It was strange to see Jasper not share Alice's gift but he had thought it would be weird if he would also give Alice's not shopping gift so he had come up with something on his own, knowing full well that it wasn't necessary and Bella wouldn't think it would be strange if he went with Alice.

"It's nothing extravagant I promise," Jasper said softly, sensing Bella's distress at yet another present.

"It's all too much already!" she exclaimed.

I noticed Jasper sent a wave of calm her way and she relaxed a little. "Thanks," she muttered embarrassedly.

"No problem, here you go," Jasper said softly while handing her the gift.

She unwrapped the black leathered notebook and looked at Jasper when she realized it was empty.

"It's a diary, or it could be if you want it to be, see I don't remember much from my human days and neither do most of the rest, so I just thought you might want to write some of the most important things down for… you know… later," Jasper said, clearly embarrassed. I didn't like the thought of Bella becoming a vampire but since Alice had already seen it and apparently talked to Bella about it, it seemed inevitable so this was actually a really sweet gift from Jasper.

"Thank you Jasper, I love it!" she said while hugging Jasper. He looked a little uncomfortable at the closeness for a moment and I knew how much his throat was burning but he didn't need anyone to calm him down because I could sense a shift in his mind and he was just hugging a sister, he couldn't hurt Bella.

I smiled at my brother's acceptance of a human so close to him and he sensed my mood because he smiled shyly at me when he released Bella.

"So I guess that part of the evening is over," Alice said teasingly.

"Not so fast little sis!" I stopped her, just like she knew I would. Alice had a taste for theatrics but I didn't mind right now.

"You didn't have to get me anything!" Bella already started to argue but I stopped her with a wave of my hand.

"Don't start! My family gave you presents it's only fair that I do the same, besides, I didn't spend any money on it so you can't really object!" I said, trying to sound stern but failing only slightly, I couldn't tell Bella what to do even if I wanted to but I just hoped she would notice my determination and accept it for a change.

"Fine," she muttered unwillingly. I smiled at her reluctance but handed her the small box nonetheless.

It was a necklace that had belonged to my mother, it was one of her most beautiful and valuable jewelry, apart from her wedding ring which would hopefully soon join the necklace on Bella, and it was also the necklace she had worn most often so it meant the world to me.

Bella opened the box and gasped in shock. "Edward!" she said reproachfully.

"Like I said, I didn't spend any money on it, I promise! It belonged to my mother, it's the piece of jewelry she had worn most often and one of the few things I remember about her, it's special to me and so are you so it's only logical that you should wear it," I explained, hopeful that Bella would want to wear a necklace from that time.

"It's beautiful Edward, I love it," Bella said with tears in her eyes.

I took the necklace from the box and placed it around her neck, a perfect fit and it looked beautiful on Bella. I had always known it would suite her but not as well as it did, like it had been made especially for her.

"Thank you Edward," Bella said sweetly before kissing me briefly. She was quickly pulling away again but I wasn't quite done kissing my love just yet. So I folded my arms around her waist and held her close to me, keeping our lips locked the entire time. Bella's arms crept around my neck and I forgot everything around me. I didn't know how long we had been standing there before Alice started to cough subtly and Emmett started whistling and howling like a dog. I broke away from Bella and looked at my family abashed.

"Young love," Carlisle said to Esme while rolling his eyes.

"Like you're not exactly the same way? He takes after you remember?" Esme shot back lovingly and I smiled at her gratefully.

"Women," Emmett said while rolling his eyes comically.

_I don't know what it is but she drives me crazy_

Jasper started singing out of the blue.

_I don't know what she does but she drives me wild_

Emmett joined in happily and all the girls looked at them in surprise. Carlisle and I both knew where this was going so we just shrugged before Carlisle continued.

_If only she could let me be the man I want to be_

He smiled lovingly at Esme.

I joined the group in the center of the room.

_Well she can leave me helpless as a child_

I finished the first part of the song.

Bella looked at me with her eyes large like plates and I just grinned back. It wasn't unusual for all of us to fool around like this it was just the first time it had happened in front of Bella but it wasn't something we could really control once we started going.

_I don't know how it is but she has the power_

Jasper continued while staring intently into Alice's eyes, who was just staring back, still speechless and unable to make sense of it all. She hadn't seen it coming since it was a spur of the moment kind of thing so she didn't know just quite how to react yet. It seemed the rest of the girls weren't much better off though.

_She can make me laugh when I want to cry_

I sang the next line.

_Oh yeah_

Jasper backed me up.

_She tells me that I'm in control but I know it's just a lie_

Emmett sang happily and Rosalie smiled at him smugly.

Then we all went all out for the chorus

_And I don't mind oh  
Will she love me tomorrow like she loves me today?  
She can keep your heart guessing but she's yours if she stays  
And that's what it feels like  
To love a woman  
To love a woman_

We were all dancing with our respective loves and they were laughing now. Bella was clearly enjoying herself.

We neatly realigned the girls to where they had been standing before, before continuing on with the song.

_This has to be you Edward_. The guys thought simultaneously and I just looked at them in surprise.

Then I thought of the lines that were coming and knew what they had meant, so I took Bella's hand and pulled her close to me.

_When you're looking in her eyes you can see forever_

I sang while staring in her eyes. Bella giggled nervously.

_Forever_

All the boys joined in.

_You're captured by the beauty of her soul_

I continued.

_Oh yeah_

My back up.

_You know you're never gonna find a woman like this again_

I finished before kissing Bella's lips briefly.

Then we sang the chorus once more.

"Take it away Emmett!" Jasper said theatrically before Emmett started the last part of the song.

_Oh she can make your day  
Oh she can take it all away_

He sang while theatrically dropping to his knees in front of Rosalie, earning a grin from my sister.

_Take it all away_

We backed him up.

_And oh whether it's wrong or right  
You know it in the end you'd do it all again  
To love a woman  
Just to love a woman _

Emmett sang, his voice full of emotion.

_Uh huh_

We backed him up again.

_Oh you know_

Emmett continued.

_Yes I know, yes I know_

We chanted.

_She loves you tomorrow like she loves you today_

Emmett.

_Well she loves you_

The rest of us continued while swaying to the absent music like true backup singers.

_She can keep your heart guessing but she's yours if she stays_

Jasper took over from Emmett and threw in a little more heavy accent, effectively sweeping Alice of her feet. I smiled as I could hear her thoughts turn to jelly.

_She's yours if she stays_

We dutifully continued.

_And that's what it feels like_

Jasper.

_I'm gonna say it_

Carlisle put a little soul into it.

_And that's what it feels like_

Jasper again.

_What it feels like oh_

Emmett chimed in.

_And that's what it feels like  
To love a woman  
To love a woman  
_

Jasper finished the chorus.

_Mm hmm_

I hummed soulfully.

_Yes to love a woman_

We all sang powerfully.

The girls erupted in cheers and whistles as we took the traditional bows. Even Bella was clapping and howling at us in enthusiasm.

We quickly took our seats again, pretending nothing had happened.

"That was great!" the girls all said enthusiastically.

"You guys should really start your own boyband, 'The Cullen brothers!'" Bella chimed in with a grin and I grimaced at her.

"This was a one time, private performance," I assured her with a smile.

"Too bad," Bella whispered. "You're sexy when you're singing," she continued, sending my thoughts into a spin. This girl was pure evil! And I wouldn't have it any other way.

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**A/N: **Like I said, I was "melig" (not that that's anything new for me :P But still…) Sorry if you think it's a bit uncharacteristic or anything but I hope you enjoyed it all the same ;) Well enjoy the rest of your day and I'll be back tomorrow with the tenth chapter already :) Xxx Thari


	10. Chapter 10: Bleeding Love

**A/N: **Ten chapters already, this story is flying by! :O Anyways, thanks so much to everyone who favored my story, favored me, added this story to their story alert and added me to their author alert, it makes me happy to know people like my stories :) A special thanks to all the reviewers, **Emma-MasenCullen**, **Shirley**, **Brittney**, **Raven's twimom** and **crazyanniecroc** , your reviews make me extremely happy!

To Shirley: Hahaha JIJ melig? Kan ik me niet voorstellen ;) I'm just happy I'm good at thinking up gifts for _fictional_ characters :D I suck at coming up with gifts for _real_ people :P I always spend god knows how long trying to think of something good :D When I wrote it I was actually talking to you, telling you this chapter was just going to be _wrong_ :D Anyways, thanks for the reviews ;)

To Brittney: I'm glad you thought it was funny :P I thought it was extremely funny at the time but then again that's the definition of 'melig' :D So I'm glad it all worked out fine eventually ;)

To Raven's twimom: I'm glad you liked my silliness :D

This chapter is based on the song Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis, I think it's a beautiful song :) It's time for the trip to New York, fluff guaranteed ;) I chose New York because it's an amazing city, I've been there last summer with my boyfriend and I fell in love with that city instantly! I can't wait till I'm going back there (although that might be a while since unfortunately I do not own a money tree nor did I win the lottery… _yet_ ;)).

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**Bleeding Love**

This morning we left for New York very early, it wasn't a long flight but we wanted as much time in the Big Apple as we could get. Bella was already complaining that she needed sleep while I didn't and that she would be missing so much time in that bed. I told her that the thing I was looking forward to most was to be in that bed with her, knowing how wrong that sounded but luckily she understood what I had meant perfectly and cheered up after that.

New York was a very busy city with lots of things to do and I wanted to share all those experiences with Bella. I had told her that she was going to have to plan all the trips except for our last day, that would be all mine. For the rest, all she wanted to do would be done and she wasn't allowed to look at any prices, wherever she wanted to eat we would eat, or rather she would eat, and wherever she wanted to go we would go. I couldn't wait to see the city through her eyes so when our plane landed and we had taken our bags it was hard for me to keep moving at human speed and Bella was almost running to keep up with me.

"Gees Edward! I'm only human remember!" she said jokingly while we waited for the car that was coming to pick us up. Bella was panting lightly and I smiled at her apologetically, trying to dazzle her, like she said I did very often, into forgetting what I had just done.

"Sorry love, I'm just excited to be here with you," I said softly.

"Me too Edward," she responded, clearly I was already forgiven.

The limousine arrived and I heard Bella gasp as she realized that _that_ car was coming to pick _us_ up.

"Your family doesn't do things halfway do they?" Bella asked suspiciously while I put our suitcases in the back of the limo, leaving the driver to stare at me in shock.

None of his costumers usually handled anything themselves, they wanted to be waited on hand and foot. So his surprise even intensified when he was trying to hold the door open for Bella and me and I stopped him.

"Allow me," I said kindly while opening the door and helping Bella in.

_He looks like a really nice guy._ The man thought and I couldn't help but smile. _And he seems to care for that woman a great deal. _The driver continued his assessment.

_If only he knew how much._ I thought to myself with a smile.

"What are you smiling about?" Bella asked suspiciously.

"The driver thinks I'm nice and that I care for you a lot, if that isn't the understatement of the century I don't know what is," I explained.

Bella just smiled in response and as soon as the driver was in his seat the car started moving and Bella was mesmerized by the sight of the city.

"It's so beautiful," Bella said in awe.

"It has its charms," I said indifferently, staring at something a million times more beautiful myself.

"Will you stop that?" Bella asked laughingly.

"Stop what?" I was surprised to say the least.

"Staring at me, you're distracting me and you'll miss the entire city, it's so great!" she gushed.

"I've seen the city, I'm sorry for distracting you but it's your own fault though! You're breathtaking when you're mesmerized the way you are right now," I accused.

"Stop it!" Bella said again.

_They look so in love, I can't wait to tell Marie about them, she always loves young couples in love._ The driver thought. Apparently he and Marie had been married for forty years already and they were still as much in love as they had been when they had first met. I hoped Bella and I would be the same way in forty years.

Not much later we arrived at the hotel and after tipping the driver royally we were ready to check in. The penthouse suite was beautiful and the hotel in general was very good. It was one of the best hotels in the city and I knew Bella would think it would be too much but nothing was too good for her right now, I wanted to spoil her any way I could. And even though I knew she had only accepted it all because Carlisle and Esme had arranged it and paid for it, it still felt like I was giving her a gift as well.

"Where do you want to go first love?" I asked her.

"I don't know, there's so much I want to see," she said eagerly.

"Maybe we should take it slow today, how about a walk in Central Park?" I suggested.

Luckily Alice had seen that it was going to be cloudy the entire time we would be here so there was nothing holding us back, perfect.

"Sounds good!" Bella said enthusiastically.

And we spent a blissful afternoon just enjoying each other's company, walking around the park, watching an amateur softball game by some guys who were on a break from their jobs and then just sitting in the grass talking about everything and nothing in particular. The day ended after having eaten in a restaurant, at least Bella, and we were on our way back to our hotel, hands locked and fingers entwined. We looked like any other couple in love and the sight of the two of us through other people's eyes, seeing how much love they saw between us, made me almost giddy.

Every evening Bella spent trying to figure out where to go the next day, she wanted to see everything and even though I was happy doing whatever she wanted to do, she kept checking if her plans were okay with me and I found it adorable that she considered my feelings so much when all I wanted was to be close to her and hold her and see her have a good time. This trip was perfect. And we did see everything, due to Bella's impeccable timing. She took us through Central Park almost every day because she loved it there so much, then we would continue on to all the other sites in the city. We watched Mary Poppins on Broadway and Bella had loved it so much she wanted to see it again the next day, so we did, we walked the Brooklyn bridge to Brooklyn, we roamed around Times Square in the middle of the night and we even went shopping one day to my great surprise.

"It's fun when it's with you and we go at my rate," Bella explained with a small smile.

We went to the Empire State Building and I had never seen Bella more serene than she was on top of that building.

"It feels like I'm on top of the world here, like nothing can happen to me, and to be here with you is just perfect," she explained as I wrapped my arms around her and let my head rest on the top of hers. We watched the city in silence for a while and I just marveled at the beautiful girl that let me call her mine. It was amazing.

That's when I knew this was going to have to be _the_ place. I had already made every other arrangement but I had left that decision for when we would actually arrive here. I wanted it to be a magical night and the only way for it to be perfect would be to do it at the place Bella seemed to like the most of all. So this was going to be the place where I was going to propose to Bella on our last day in the city.

We only had two more nights left in New York and tomorrow was going to be my day. I had arranged everything and when Bella had been asleep I had made sure that the Empire State Building was arranged as well, nobody but Bella and me was going to be there tomorrow evening.

"So what are we doing tomorrow?" Bella asked when she returned from the shower.

She was wearing boy shorts and a t-shirt and with her wet hair a little tangled from the shower she looked incredibly sexy. I patted the space next to me on the bed and she quickly jumped on it, hugging herself close to me.

"That's a surprise love," I murmured in her hair while I was taking in her scent.

"But now what am I going to do with my evening if I don't have my planning?" she asked with a pout.

"I know a thing we can do," I said suggestively before placing her on her back and carefully bending over her so I could kiss her senseless.

"Hmmm I think I actually like this plan better," Bella murmured in between kisses. I laughed.

"I'm glad," I said smilingly. "Me too," I whispered before burying her in another round of kisses.

We spent the rest of the night in the same manner until Bella fell asleep on my chest and I was content just listening to her heartbeat and the sound of her breathing. She was so peaceful in her sleep and it calmed my nerves a little. Tomorrow was going to be a big day and since I was actually moving quite fast, I hadn't even known Bella for a full year even, I was afraid she might turn me down. It would make sense, she was still young and although I knew she loved me, there was no guarantee that that was going to stay that way forever. For me it was clear, she had always been the only girl for me, but she was human, she could easily change her mind. Not to mention the fact that her parents were divorced so she was bound to have some problems with marriage as a whole. But I wanted nothing more than to be with Bella, I had enrolled in Seattle University for next year and I had already bought a house near the university, if Bella didn't want to marry me I was still going to be close to her until she ordered me away. I loved her and I didn't want to force her into doing anything she might regret. But if she wanted to live with me I wanted to do it properly, the way I was raised.

I spent the remainder of the night worrying about the next day and what I would do if Bella would decline my proposal, I would be heartbroken for sure. I wanted to call Alice to ask if she had seen anything but she probably wouldn't even tell me if she had so I didn't bother.

Bella woke up early and I was happy, the sooner I could talk to her and get my mind of things the better.

"Good morning love, did you sleep well?" I asked.

"It was perfect," she answered, still a little sleepily.

"Good, do you want some breakfast?" I asked as I started to get up.

"Sure, sounds good," she replied.

"Why don't you get dressed and I'll order breakfast for you?" I suggested.

"Sure, what should I wear though?" Bella asked a little nervously.

"Whatever you want is fine love," I promised her.

"Alright." And with that she went back into the bedroom to change.

We spent the entire day in Central Park like we had done before, this time I had brought a picnic basket with all her favorite food in it and we sat in the grass while she enjoyed her lunch.

"This is nice Edward, thank you," she said sweetly.

"I'm glad you like it love," I replied. _I hope you like the rest too._ I thought hopefully.

"Alice left me a note saying that we were going to go back to the hotel now, is that right?" Bella asked around four o'clock.

"I had lost track of time entirely but yes that is correct," I said as I rose from where I was sitting, holding out my hand to help Bella up as well.

"I'm going to take a shower, is that alright?" Bella asked softly. I knew Alice had instructed her to do so, buying me some time to arrange everything perfectly.

"That's fine love, take your time," I answered.

I was getting a little nervous, this was it.

Bella left for the bathroom and I quickly changed into the black suit and black shirt Alice had picked out for me. I left Bella the note with one single red rose, telling her to meet me downstairs and I was off to the limousine that was waiting for us downstairs.

To my surprise it was the same man as before driving us and I smiled at him in recognition.

"Hello again," he greeted me. "Where's your girl?" he asked curiously while he appraised my outfit.

"She's upstairs getting ready," I told him with a smile.

"Ah, girls," he replied knowingly and I smiled in agreement.

I chatted with the driver for a while and he asked me about our plans for tonight. I told him all about my plans.

"That's wonderful sir!" he said joyfully. "From what I could tell earlier there is no way she's going to say no, there's so much love between the two of you!" he exclaimed.

"Thank you, I really hope you're right," I replied.

Then I noticed Bella descending the chairs and I hurried to make my way over to the bottom so I could take her hand and guide her to the limousine. Alice had bought Bella a beautiful blue evening gown and even though Bella looked slightly uncomfortable in it, she looked extremely breathtaking.

"You're amazing," I whispered as I kissed her on the cheek.

"Thank you, courtesy of Alice of course," she responded with a smile.

"Remind me to thank her for that later," I said smiling back at my love.

"Good evening miss," the driver named Joe said while he stepped aside to let me open the door for Bella. I smiled at him and he winked back.

The first stop wasn't far away and as we entered the fancy restaurant I had picked out Bella looked around in admiration.

"This place looks amazing," she said softly.

"The food is supposed to be the best in New York," I replied.

And according to Bella the food was truly amazing, by the time she'd had desert she wore a huge grin of satisfaction on her face and I couldn't help but smile back at her in adoration. This girl was amazing.

After dinner we drove to the place where the helicopter was waiting for us. I had arranged for a private flight over the city so we could see all the sites. According to Bella it was the perfect way to end our trip and if everything went well I was going to have to disagree with her later tonight. If she would accept my proposal _that_ would be the best way to finish our trip but this was definitely a worthy second.

Bella looked even more joyful than she had when we had driven into town the first time. She was taking everything in and pointing out things to me that she loved and that she had noticed. Even though she was fully aware that I knew every part of this city already it was nice that she shared every thought with me at this moment. It was the best gift she could ever give me.

After the helicopter ride it was time for the grand finale and I was getting more nervous as we left the limousine to enter the Empire State Building.

"I didn't think it was still open this late," Bella remarked when we entered the elevator.

"It usually isn't," I replied with a smile.

Bella looked at me quizzically but decided she was going to find out eventually anyways so there was no point in asking what I had meant.

I had arranged for some candles and a bouquet of roses to meet us on the top of the Empire State Building and the crew had arranged it all perfectly, it looked exactly like I had envisioned it and as Bella took in the scenery I took a few moments to calm myself, looking over the city and trying to find the courage to do what I had planned.

"This is amazing Edward, did you arrange all of this?" Bella asked in awe.

"Yes, I noticed how much you loved the Empire State Building the first time we were here and I wanted to show you the view at night as well," I replied, my voice unusually shaky from the nerves.

"Why is there nobody else up here?" Bella asked then.

"Because I rented the building for the evening," I explained simply.

"_You rented the entire Empire State Building_?" Bella asked in shock.

This was not the direction I wanted the conversation to take.

"I just wanted to enjoy it in peace," I said before taking Bella in my arms and enjoying the view with her for a few moments.

"There was another reason I had brought you up here tonight again," I started slowly.

Bella released herself from my embrace to look at me expectantly.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Well, you know how much I love you right? And being away from you this past half a year has been excruciating and I don't want to go through that again Bella. I want to be with you the rest of my life, you make me feel complete and I love you more than anything in the whole world. I know this is a bit soon but I know you're the one for me and I'll never want anyone else again. I want to live with you in Seattle and I want to do it the right way. I asked Charlie for your hand and he said that it was entirely your decision, he did say that it was a bit soon but that he could see how deep our love was and he wasn't going to stand in our way," I started.

It had been an awkward conversation with Charlie to say the least but he thought well of me luckily and he had told me that if he wanted his daughter to be with anyone it would be me, since he trusted me and he could see how much she meant to me, he trusted I would treat her right and I promised him I would do everything in my power to make her happy every day of her life, which hopefully would be every day of forever some day.

I knelt to the ground and pulled the jewelry box that contained my mother's ring out of my pocket. I saw Bella's eyes widen in shock but I took it as a good sign that she didn't stop me or interrupt me just yet .

"Isabella Swan, I love you with all my heart, would you do me the honor of having your hand in marriage?" I asked with my eyes locked with hers.

If my heart could beat it would be pounding out of my chest right now, I was holding my breath and I was anxious that she was going to say no. Her thoughts, as always, gave nothing away so I was left there to wait.

The second it took Bella to wrap her mind around what was going on was excruciatingly long as I sat there, ring on display and my heart in her hands, waiting for her answer. The suspense was killing me.

"I would love nothing more than to be your wife," Bella said with a huge smile that mirrored my own.

Only one sentence came to my mind at that moment.

_You cut me open and I keep bleeding I keep, keep bleeding love_

I happily took my mother's wedding ring from the box and placed it around her finger, another perfect fit. Then I picked Bella up and spun her around while I kissed her passionately. My fiancée, I had heard men use the word so many times before and I had seen men think of their fiancées with a lot of love but I had never truly experienced how amazing a feeling it really was until now. Bella as my fiancée was the best thing that had ever happened to me and my heart was pouring over with joy, happiness and love.

Another sentence rang through my head as I was holding my Bella.

_Nothing's greater than the rush that comes with your embrace. _So true.

"I was wrong before," Bella said when we ended our kiss.

"About what?" I asked curiously.

"The helicopter was great but it wasn't the best way to finish our vacation," Bella said with a smile and I knew exactly what she meant. "This is," she continued before kissing me again. My mind spun and I was blissfully dazzled for as long as the kiss lasted. We spent the remainder of the evening watching over the city, mostly in silence, and always touching, hugging each other and kissing every now and then. It was indeed the perfect way to end a perfect vacation.

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**A/N:** That was it for the proposal :) I hope you liked the way I did it :) Like I said, I love New York and this would pretty much be my perfect proposal :P That or on a baseball field ;) I'll be back tomorrow with the next chapter :) In the meantime I can't wait to hear what you thought :) Xxx Thari


	11. Chapter 11: Saturday Night's Alright

**A/N:** Hi there, another day, another chapter :) Don't have much time so as always thanks for the reviews **Shirley**, **Emma-MasenCullen** and **Raven's twimom**, you guys are the best! :)

To Shirley: I don't know what I'd do without you reminding me that there's another episode of TVD :O I forgot all about it :P But I've downloaded it now so hopefully I can watch it sometime this weekend :P I'm glad you liked the fluffiness that was the previous chapter :P I'd liked to have seen you strangle Bella :D but who would say no to Eddie? :D

To Raven's twimom: That's so sweet, I'm glad you liked the chapter so much :)

Enjoy chapter 11 :) Edward's bachelor party ;)

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**Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting**

I had to hand it to Alice, she knew how to throw together a wedding quickly. She had sent out the invitations even before I had known Bella was going to say yes, accept for to Charlie en Renee, she was letting Bella do those honors, although she had already arranged Renee and Phil's flight immediately and everything was ready for the big day. Which was going to be tomorrow. I was nervous and eager at the same time. I wanted everything to be perfect and mostly I wanted everything to be perfect for Bella, as long as she was saying "I do" in the end, I couldn't care less about decorations, seating charts, color schemes and floral arrangements, that was more up Alice's alley anyways.

Bella and I had a month left before we were going to have to go to school again and we planned it so that we would be back a week before the semester started to make the final arrangements and get settled into our new home. Tomorrow was going to be our wedding, just a small wedding with only our closest friends and family, or rather Bella's closest friends since I didn't have any other friends beside my family, it was just going to be Phil and Renee, Charlie, Esme, Carlisle, Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper, Alice, the Denali sisters with Eleazar and Carmen, and Bella's best friend Angela with her boyfriend Ben. It was going to be small and intimate. I would have been more than fine with marrying at our house and Emmett performing the ceremony but Alice wasn't a big fan of that idea. Bella would have probably been fine with it if she hadn't found this cute little church just outside town that she immediately fell in love with. So we were going to get married there with Angela's father performing the ceremony.

"It's going to be perfect!" Alice said enthusiastically. "I'm so happy for you Edward! You've finally found a girl and she's perfect for you and fits into the family so easily it can't be anything but meant to be!" Alice sang as she gave me a hug.

"Thank you for doing all of this on such short notice. I know you love planning these things elaborately but we both just want to be married before we start the next semester," I said appreciatively.

I had suggested marrying in fall break and living apart until then but Bella was so eager to live with me, just as I was to live with her but she wasn't as good at hiding it as I was, that she insisted on marrying this summer, if that was at all possible of course.

"Alright Bella, now it's time for you to leave, it's bad luck for the bride and groom to see each other before the wedding," Alice said earnestly.

"Doesn't that only go for the actual day of the wedding?" Bella asked cautiously, unwilling to leave my side just yet.

"I'm not taking any chances!" Alice said sternly before practically shooing Bella out the door.

"I can't wait until it's tomorrow!" Bella said eagerly.

"Me neither love," I replied before kissing my fiancée passionately.

_My fiancée, I still couldn't believe how lucky I was to be allowed to call the most beautiful girl in the world that. And by this time tomorrow it was going to be my _wife_. Mrs. Bella Cullen._ I thought with a sigh and at the sound of those words my stomach turned and I was feeling light headed. I felt like I could fly.

Bella's truck cautiously drove off our driveway and I went back inside to see if Alice needed help with anything. It was the least I could do after all.

We were going to have a small party at our house with our wedding guests after the ceremony, since there were going to be too little people to actually rent a room and the house was a perfect place for parties to begin with. Alice had done a fabulous job decorating and I wondered if wedding planning wasn't something she'd like to pursue. But before I could ask my question my brothers and Carlisle came dashing into the door.

"Sorry Alice, he won't be helping you anymore," Emmett said looking anything but apologetic.

"I know, you'd think after so many years of being my brother you would know that there's no surprises in the world for me!" Alice said while rolling her eyes at Emmett.

"Right, anyways, Edward, get your stuff, you're coming with us!" Emmett continued.

"Where are we going?" I asked, I knew they weren't going to answer that question, since it was supposed to be a surprise but I was still hoping my question would make at least one of them think about their plans for tonight.

"Nice try but it's not going to work. We've all been watching enough sports, or reading in Carlisle's case," Emmett added while rolling his eyes at our father, who just stuck out his tongue in response. "To focus on other things," Emmett said smugly. "But if you're going to try too hard I might just have to think about my favorite nights with Rosalie," he added evilly, knowing this would make me cooperate.

"Urgh," I groaned in frustration but followed the guys out the door anyways.

I didn't know what they had in store for me but knowing them it couldn't be good.

"Will you relax please?" Jasper cried out in frustration. "Your bachelor party is supposed to be fun!"

"Sorry, I just know you all too well," I said with a grin.

"Don't worry, we'll behave," Jasper replied.

"Right, I'll believe that when I see it," I muttered.

"Stop being such a baby Edward!" Emmett chimed in.

We sprinted into the woods and it wasn't long before I noticed the mouthwatering smell of mountain lion.

"Mountain lion?" I asked curiously.

"Yes, we had a couple of those flown in especially for you," Carlisle said. "There was an area not far from here that was having problems with an overpopulation of mountain lion and the ranger was all too happy that we were willing to take them off his hands," he explained.

"That's great!" I said a little more enthusiastically now.

After I had fed on the lions I looked at my family expectantly. They had all taken a lion for themselves as well.

"Good, so now we all have enough extra energy for the rest of the night," Emmett said happily and I was worried about the tone in his voice.

The guys lead me to the clearing where we normally played baseball if the weather was appropriate. I saw there was a football in the middle of the clearing and I looked at my brothers and father in surprise.

"We haven't played football in a while and I figured today would be the perfect opportunity. It was too bad that we couldn't play baseball due to the weather but this is a perfect alternative," Jasper explained as he walked towards the ball. "Since it's your party you can choose who you want to play with," Jasper said with a grin.

Hmmm that was a difficult decision since all of them had their advantages, Emmett could knock any opponent all the way across the field, Jasper had tactics and Carlisle was just plain dirty when he played football. I considered which one of them would be worst to play against and made my decision based on that.

"I'll go with Carlisle," I said to my father's surprise.

"Are you sure that's smart son?" he asked.

"Are you kidding? You're the meanest one of all of us when it comes to football," I said jokingly.

I knew I could outrun Emmett if I had to and I could pick Jasper's tactics out of his head before he could execute them but Carlisle was an entirely different story. Mostly because all of us were afraid to really attack our father, even though he played dirty and didn't mind attacking us frequently.

"Alright then, it's Emmett and me against Carlisle and you," Jasper said in an official tone.

We played until all of us were completely covered in dirt. Alice was definitely going to throw a fit when we'd get home. All the more reason to postpone that particular event.

Football turned out to be great fun, I always liked playing sports with my family and it was a shame that we didn't often get the chance to do it. Carlisle and I had won, and it wasn't for my mind reading that we did. I did outrun Emmett every time but Jasper's tactics were sometimes just too good to counter. However, thanks to Carlisle's ingenious tricks and never ending maneuvers we beat my brothers rather easily. Halfway through the game Emmett figured out a tactic of his own and decided to let me be and let Jasper handle me while he attacked Carlisle with all he had. Surely this shocked Carlisle at first but he came back more wicked than ever and now focused all his tricks on Emmett, with as a result that Emmett was covered in mud most of all of us. It was quite a funny sight when Carlisle tackled Emmett for the first time, not on strength but letting him trip by sticking out his foot, Emmett's face was completely in shock and not soon after that a pout showed up on his face.

"That's what you get for messing with old people," Carlisle had said triumphantly while kicking a little extra mud into Emmett's face. Jasper and I couldn't help but laugh at our brother as he stood up and tried to tackle Carlisle with everything he had, only to be met head on by a tree when Carlisle quickly stepped out of the way.

We were still laughing well after the game was over and I had to admit, a bachelor party wasn't so bad.

"We should really clean up a little," Jasper said thoughtfully, envisioning his angry pixie.

"You're right," we all agreed.

"Who's up for a swim in the river?" he suggested and we all eagerly followed him.

We didn't bother taking our clothes off, since they would have to get cleaned a little as well, as we all jumped in the river, trying to splash the biggest amount of water at the others in the process.

"So, are you nervous about tomorrow?" Carlisle asked after we had spent a while swimming in silence.

"Not so much the wedding, I can't wait for that, more what will happen afterwards," I said unsurely. Unknowing if this was really I wanted to discuss with my father in front of my brothers but who knows, they might have some useful advice as well.

"Ah, the honeymoon," Carlisle said knowingly.

"Yes," I murmured ashamed.

"Have you and Bella talked about it before?"

"Yes, I promised Bella we would try," I said, if I had been human I would have been bright red by now.

"I see," Carlisle said thoughtfully.

"It was stupid of me, she's fragile and I could so easily kill her but on the other hand I want to give her everything she wants and she's pretty stubborn when it comes to this," I said softly.

"If anyone can handle it, it's you," Carlisle tried to reassure me.

"I hope so, there's just so much at stake," I replied.

"I know, but you have the power to stop if it means protecting Bella from getting hurt," Carlisle said.

"In that case I'm not so much scared for her physically being hurt but then she'll be emotionally hurt," I said desperately.

"Don't worry about it son, she loves you, she'll understand if it's too hard for you," he said surely.

"You have met Bella haven't you?" I replied while raising my eyebrow.

Carlisle chuckled and that's when my brothers joined us.

"I just don't know what to expect," I said to all of them hoping they would help rather than make fun of me.

"Ah, seems like we arrived just in time," Emmett told Jasper with a suggestive smile.

"You really are nervous about this aren't you? I can feel it!" Jasper said surprised.

"Well, what did you expect, she's human and I'm not. I'm sure I would have been nervous even if she had been a vampire but this just complicates things even further, I don't know what to do. I think it's too dangerous anyways but when it comes to Bella I can't say no," I said desperately.

"Oh, it'll be fine Edward, relax a little," Jasper said while hitting me with a wave of calm.

"Thanks," I muttered.

"Really, it isn't that hard anyways, just let your instincts take over and you'll be fine," Emmett said without a smile for once.

"That's what I'm afraid of, my instincts taking over, since my first instinct will always be to kill," I replied softly.

"I doubt that but you're right, this is a problem," Carlisle interjected cautiously.

"We can only tell you what to expect when it comes to vampires, none of us have ever been in this kind of situation before of course, but for vampires, physical love is the most powerful thing in the world, second only to drinking human blood," Jasper began thoughtfully.

"It's amazing, being that close to the person you love is a wonderful experience," Emmett chimed in. "I can give you a visual play by play of what to expect but I doubt that's what you're looking for right now?" he continued while raising one eyebrow at me comically.

"No thanks, I've seen enough of all of your adventures but that's not the same," I replied.

Too bad it was already too late and the three of them were already thinking back to their wives. I immediately grabbed my hair in my hands and sighed in frustration. "Do you mind?" I said irritated.

"Sorry," they all replied sheepishly.

"The first time will change you completely, but you shouldn't worry about that too much Edward, Bella's presence in your life has already altered you in more ways than I would have thought possible so you'll be fine," Carlisle said reassuringly.

"If you want we can chaperone," Emmett added jokingly.

"Ha ha! Really funny!" I replied while rolling my eyes at my brother. "Thanks but no thanks."

"Alright, just a suggestion," he continued to tease.

"Edward, like I said, it's second only to the experience of drinking human blood. And since you've been able to resist her blood for so long, you'll be fine with this as well, as long as you don't completely surrender to your instincts but leave a small part of your brain working you'll be alright," Jasper said solemnly.

"Promise?" I still wasn't sure.

My brothers chuckled at my response and after that the mood lightened again. I was somewhat reassured although I still wasn't sure I was able to do it.

"Somehow I had always suspected that you would come to us with performance anxiety when you would finally be faced with physical intimacy," Emmett said while bursting out in laughter.

That did it. I had just enough insecurity about this whole ordeal to only be able to take so much of his teasing. I let out a loud growl and pounced on my brother, the surprise of my action made Emmett vulnerable and I was able to push him all the way underwater. I held him there for a while, struggling to get free from my grasp. I knew I couldn't really drown my brother but it was actually fun to watch him splatter like a fish on dry land for a little bit.

He recovered from the shock quickly though and regained his full strength. He twisted so that I was with my hand in his face rather than on the back of his head and he grabbed my wrist firmly, pushing my hand back so he could resurface.

"You're a dead man!" Emmett growled when he had air in his lungs again.

He pounced on me, trying to drag me down into the water as well, but I foresaw his action and evaded his attack easily.

"Stupid mind reading!" Emmett muttered irritated.

I had always been faster than Emmett and with my mind reading as an extra advantage it wasn't a fair fight. The biggest problem I had was holding Emmett down once I had caught him since he kept shoving me off his back every time. After a lot of back and forth hitting, grabbing and pulling we decided on a draw and headed back to where Carlisle and Jasper had been sitting, already dry and tidy again.

"I guess it's true what they say," Carlisle chuckled when he saw the two of us, clothes torn, completely soaked and hair all over the place. "Saturday night _is_ alright for fighting," he quoted one of the Nickelback's songs Emmett and I used to listen to a lot.

Both Emmett and I grinned at each other in comradeship as we all headed back home. It hadn't been such a bad bachelor party after all.

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**A/N:** Well I hope you enjoyed it, I'll be back tomorrow :) Xxx Thari


	12. Chapter 12: From This Moment On

**A/N: **Hi there, I'm back again :P Thanks for the reviews **Shirley** and **ch0c0lat3** :)

To Shirley: I'm glad you found some time to read my silly old story ;) It's good you can't wait for the wedding, since here it is ;)

To ch0c0lat3: Thanks for the review, glad you like my story :)

Well, here's the wedding, fluff guaranteed I'd say ;) Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it ;) Enjoy and let me know ;)

**

* * *

From This Moment On**

It had been a long night after we had gotten back from my bachelor party. Being alone wasn't the best thing for me right now but I also didn't want to deal with my family. I wasn't used to feeling nervous and wasn't quite sure how to cope with it. It was irrational of course to feel this way, since I knew Bella loved me more than anything else in the world and I felt exactly the same way about her and I was more than eager to marry her today. I couldn't understand my own feelings but from what I had heard from others, cold feet were normal at your wedding. I was just scared that I wouldn't make the husband Bella deserved and that she would regret her decision somewhere in the future.

"Will you relax? You're driving me crazy!" Jasper yelled from downstairs and I just grinned.

"Sorry," I said as I walked down the stairs.

"It's alright, I should be used to your mood swings by now," he replied with a smug smile.

"This is different though," I muttered.

"I know, you'll be fine, really. The two of you are perfect together!" Jasper told me reassuringly.

"Thanks Jazz," I said appreciatively.

"Sure," he replied before walking off to help Alice with the final preparations.

"Today's the big day huh?" Carlisle said while he walked in the room.

"Yes, I can't wait to be able to call Bella mine officially," I said proudly.

"I can imagine," he said while throwing a loving smile in the direction of the kitchen, where Esme was helping the caterers set up for the party. Images of the day he met Esme appeared in his mind, quickly followed by the loving gaze she had sent his way after he had turned her. I smiled at my parents' love and devotion.

Even with the short distraction of my parents' successful marriage and never ending love, it was hard to stay calm without Bella's loving face to reassure me. What if she decided that she didn't want to be with me after all? Humans could change their minds so easily and she is still controlled by hormones after all. Her parents broke up when she was little, not the best example of marriage one can get.

"Do you want me to call Jasper again?" Carlisle asked with a smile. My expression wasn't hard to figure out.

"No, I'll be fine once I'll see Bella again," I replied with a sheepish grin.

"You'd better get ready though, Alice wants us to leave for the church in half an hour and I'm sure she'll want to fix your hair and everything once you're done," Carlisle stated.

"You're right," I said reluctantly while making my way back to my room.

Alice had already laid out my clothes for me, a simple black suit with a white shirt and black tie. I slowly got dressed while trying to argue with myself that Bella _wasn't_ going to stand me up.

I heard a soft knock on my door.

"Come in Alice," I said unnecessarily since Alice was already right in front of me.

"Hi Edward, how are we feeling today?" she asked chipper.

"Fine," I said.

"I know you better than that Edward, don't you lie to me!" she replied sternly.

"I'm fine really, just a little nervous that's all," I shrugged.

"You have nothing to be nervous about," she said confidently.

"How do you know?"

"I haven't seen Bella running away screaming so I'm assuming she won't," she joked.

"Ha ha Alice, very funny," I replied sourly. "But if she decides that at the last minute you wouldn't have seen that now would you?" I continued.

"Edward, give her some credit! She loves you enough to accept your proposal after only being with you for a year, of which you've seen each other a total of what? A month?" she responded.

"It's crazy right?"

"No, it's love, trust me, it'll all be perfect. Do you think I would organize anything less?" she challenged.

"Of course not," I replied with a smile while kissing the top of her head.

"Good, now you look perfect, go downstairs and help your brothers load up the cars so we can leave," she said.

"Shouldn't you all change as well?" I asked.

"The girls and I are going over to Bella's to help her out and we'll get ready there, the guys are already finished with everything so it's all set. I need you all to finish up at the church so we can bring Bella there, before you know it the ceremony will start," she said with a huge grin. "And don't you dare try to pick anything else out of my head, I know you Edward Cullen! It won't work anyways!" she said lovingly before dashing out the door.

I wish I could just see how it would all play out, both today and tonight, our wedding night. More nervous butterflies took up a permanent residence in my stomach it seemed. I quickly made my way to my brothers and father before I could drive myself insane with all those thoughts.

The moment I arrived downstairs Jasper hit me with another wave of calm and I smiled appreciatively at him.

_You're welcome_. He thought with a wink.

It wasn't long before everything was set at the church. We had guided all the guests to their respective seats and we were now waiting for the music to start. I was already standing next to Angela's father, Carlisle, my best man, right next to me, followed by Emmett and Jasper. Carlisle patted my shoulder in show of support but I was too caught up in my own thoughts to really respond.

The music changed into the wedding march and the doors flew open. Alice, Rosalie and Esme glided through the door first, all with broad smiles on their faces.

_Oh Edward!_ Esme's emotional thought hit me and I looked at her with an adoring smile. _I can't believe this is finally happening, I'm so happy for you!_ My smile broadened, indicating that I couldn't agree more.

That's when Bella's overwhelming and amazing scent hit me and everything and everyone else in the room ceased to exist. I looked at the beaming face of my lovely bride and I couldn't help but beam back at her in adoration. She looked even more beautiful than she always did, I never thought that would have been possible. Her hair was hanging down in soft curls while the two strands nearest her face were pulled back with one simple clip. She was wearing make-up but I could tell Alice had worked to keep everything as natural as possible, Bella's eyes were now only slightly bigger and her cheeks just a little rosier, other than that it was still my Bella. I could tell she was blushing and it made her look even more mesmerizing.

Then my gaze glided down to her dress, I hadn't even noticed it before, being completely dazed by her beautiful face. It was slightly low cut and hugged my love tightly around her waist and breasts, the skirt was wider and flowed beautifully all the way to the floor. For a moment my thoughts lingered on what the dress revealed, or more hinted at, and I couldn't wait for our honeymoon.

_Really Edward? _Jasper's thoughts interrupted mine. _You're getting married and _that's_ what you're feeling? _He asked while he raised his eyebrow at me comically. I was immediately embarrassed by what had happened although I had no control over it. I could hear Jasper chuckle slightly and Emmett bowed his head towards him in interest, only to find Jasper shrugging and composing himself.

The entire exchange took less than a second but it had distracted me from my bride and I wasn't happy. So I gazed back at my love, who was now almost at my side and for the first time I actually saw Charlie holding her arm and guiding her, he looked more neatly than I had ever seen him before and from the looks of it he wasn't completely comfortable wearing the suit he was wearing. He noticed my gaze and just shrugged and smiled, I answered with a smile of my own.

Charlie placed Bella's hand in mine after shaking my hand first, as a sign of his acceptance. He hadn't been difficult about the engagement at all, he had been expecting it, he said, and he could tell that I was making Bella happy and that's all he ever wanted for her.

"Wow, you look amazing!" I whispered to Bella.

"Thanks to Alice," she said shyly. "You're not so bad yourself," she continued with a smile.

Bella was never comfortable speaking in front of an entire room full of people but she had insisted on the both of us writing our own vows. According to her the traditional wedding vows couldn't even begin to cover what this union meant to her, or me for that matter. I had eagerly agreed, since this was possibly the only thing she had insisted on about the entire wedding and I wouldn't deny her that. Any chance to tell my love how I felt about her was welcome as far as I was concerned.

"Bella, you may begin with your vows," Angela's father said to Bella.

I could see that Bella was uncomfortable for a moment but recovered quickly before she began speaking.

"Edward Cullen, from the moment I met you I was in love with you. I was clumsy enough to walk into you, sure that I was going to fall to the floor at that moment, but your arms caught me and you haven't let me go since. I promise I will love you every day of forever and I am happy and proud to be able to call myself your wife from this day on," Bella said as she slid the wedding ring on my finger. I could hear Esme's soft sobs and her feelings mirrored my own, I was more than touched by Bella's words and I just wanted to pick her up and kiss her senseless but I guess that would have to wait for now.

"Edward, it is your turn now," Angela's father said.

"Isabella Swan, when you bumped into me, that was the best thing that had ever happened to me. I have never met someone as loving, pure and great as you are. I am truly blessed that you accepted my hand in marriage. The first time our eyes met my world stopped spinning and I forgot everything around me. You continue to take my breath away every time I'm with you and you never stop to amaze me. You are and will always be my life. Everything that I am I want to share with you forever. I love you so much, I promise to love, cherish and protect you from this day on until the end of time. Today you make me the luckiest and happiest man on the planet by becoming my wife," I said my vows while sliding my mother's wedding ring onto the right finger.

I only heard "I hereby pronounce you man and wife" I didn't wait for the "You may now kiss the bride" before I picked up Bella into my arms and brought my lips to hers with all the passion and emotions I felt for her. She responded in the same way by throwing her arms around my neck and kissing me fiercely. I hardly noticed the cheers coming from our relatives and friends, I was completely absorbed. But when Carlisle softly coughed we both broke free to greet our friends and family.

I hardly registered all the hugs and best wishes from our loved ones, I was focused only on Bella, never letting go of her hand and hardly ever taking my eyes away from her, only when others demanded my attention I would break away from her but would continue to watch her through the minds of everyone around her.

My bride was magnificent and I couldn't have wished for a more perfect wedding. Alice had planned everything perfectly and I couldn't thank her enough.

_Only a dance with my favorite brother after the bride and the mother of the groom have been is thanks enough for me._ Alice thought as she noticed yet another one of my appreciative looks in her direction.

A vision in her mind showed her her wish was going to come true and she left the room with a happy smile on her face to arrange the table full of food for all the humans present.

"Congrats bro!" Emmett said with a sincere smile while pounding me on the back amicably.

"Thanks," I said, all but oblivious to the round of teasing he had planned for me.

"Can't believe you finally found someone who would put up with all your flaws," he continued with a smug smile.

"Neither can I," I replied sincerely. It was true, I would never stop being thankful that Bella was willing to love me and have me the way I am.

Emmett was momentarily set back by the sincerity in my voice and he decided it wasn't worth it to try and ruin this moment. He was giving me a _get out of teasing free card_ as he called it.

"Thanks," I said with a smile.

Jasper joined us quickly and after he had also congratulated me again Emmett remembered something about the ceremony.

"So what were you laughing about Jazz?" Emmett asked Jasper while raising one eyebrow at him suspiciously.

"Nothing really," Jasper replied with a shrug and I was grateful for his discretion. Emmett would never let me forget it if Jasper was to tell the truth.

"Yeah right! I know you better than that!" Emmett said firmly. "The two of you were having one of those conversations! So out with it!" he pushed.

"Seeing Edward that way was just funny," Jasper said.

"Right… I don't buy it, but I'll let it go… For now…" Emmett replied, finishing with a threatening tone.

"Thanks," I replied sincerely before making my way back to my wife, I hadn't seen her in too long already and I was getting anxious.

She was talking to Rosalie and Esme. I sneaked up behind her and put my arms around her waist before placing kisses along her neck and whispering "I missed you" in her ear.

She turned around giggling and the sound of her laughter made my head spin. She threw her arms around my neck and kissed me, causing me to lose all sense of what was going on around me.

"Careful Bella, or you're going to make him lose consciousness," Alice warned with a grin as she joined the small group.

"Can vampires actually faint?" she whispered a little surprised.

I could hear everyone of our kind chuckle softly at her comment.

"You're adorable," I muttered before placing more kisses along her neck and cheek.

"No silly, we can't, it was just a matter of speech," Alice said while shaking her head incredibly. "Now behave yourselves it's time for the first dance!" she announced.

Not long after that Bella and I were pushed to the center of the room and everyone made sure they got out of our way.

The song started playing softly and I pulled Bella close to me as I started swaying to the music. I knew Bella had feared this moment, she wasn't one for dancing, especially not in public and even after all the attempts I had made to make her relax, telling her nothing could go wrong as long as the right person, being me, was leading her, I could still feel her tense.

I brought my lips to her ear and whispered "Please relax Bella, you'll be fine, I promise. You might even enjoy yourself," I added smugly.

"Right," she muttered but wasn't relaxing.

I decided it was no use and started leading her across the floor.

"Listen to the lyrics love, it's exactly the way I feel about you," I told her sweetly.

At that moment the chorus started playing and I could see Bella focusing on the lyrics instead of her own embarrassment.

_From this moment as long as I live  
I will love you, I promise you this  
There is nothing I wouldn't give  
From this moment on_

When I had heard this song for the first time after I had met Bella I knew that this was going to be our wedding song. It was exactly the way I felt and thought about her. She was my life and I would always love her.

Bella beamed at me and she seemed to actually enjoying herself.

"See? It's not so bad after all is it?" I asked smugly.

"No, not with you," she admitted.

"Good!" I replied happily.

"It's all so perfect Edward, I couldn't be happier than I am right now!" she said with tears in her eyes.

"Neither could I love," I replied, touched by the sincerity and emotion in her voice.

_You're the reason I believe in love  
And you're the answer to my prayers from up above  
All we need is just the two of us  
My dreams came true because of you_

Shania Twain continued to sound through the room.

"It really is a perfect song isn't it?" Bella said.

"You really made all my dreams come true, even if I had never known before that I had those dreams," I replied earnestly. "I love you Mrs. Bella Cullen." It was the first time I had called her that since it had been true and I loved the sound of it. The most beautiful woman in the entire world was officially mine and mine alone.

Bella noticed the sparkling in my eyes. "You like that huh?" she challenged.

"More than you can possibly imagine," I replied solemnly.

"Me too," she replied before breaking down into a breathtaking smile and kissing me sweetly on my lips.

The song had ended and it was time to dance with the rest of the guests. Charlie shuffled over to where Bella and I were standing and he pried her away from me. Bella left with an unsure look on her face. I didn't have to be able to read her mind to know what she was thinking now, dancing with me was one thing, dancing with _other_ _people_ was a wholly different matter. I chuckled at her expression before I turned my attention to my mother.

"I'm so happy for you Edward! You have no idea!" she said, voice thick with emotion.

"Thanks mom," I just said.

We danced in silence the rest of the song, my mother was too overwhelmed with emotion to speak and my mind was filled with images of my beautiful wife.

The evening passed by quickly and the time apart from Bella took a little too long for my liking. I couldn't be happier when I got to hold Bella in my arms again.

"I missed you," she said while snuggling close to me.

"I've missed you too love," I said while kissing the top of her head.

"Edward?" she started.

"Hmm?"

"Thank you," Bella said sincerely.

"No Bella, thank _you_! You've just made me the happiest man alive, well, sort of," I added with a smile.

"Today was perfect, we should really buy Alice something nice as a thank you," she said with a smile.

"Oh you really shouldn't have but that is a beautiful necklace," Alice said while Jasper was spinning her past me.

"There's just no surprising her is there?" Bella grumbled.

"It's alright love, she still loves the gift all the same and it's the thought that counts right?" I tried to soothe her.

"I guess," Bella muttered smiling.

"It's still a little strange to think of you as my husband though," Bella said suddenly.

"Most people get cold feet _before_ the wedding," I added jokingly although my heart was in my throat, afraid that Bella might have second thoughts about the whole thing.

"No silly, it's not that! I'm more than certain about marrying you and the fact that you're my husband but I just think that husband isn't the appropriate word to describe you, it's too _normal_," she added blushingly.

I chuckled. "You don't see me clearly love," I replied lovingly.

Bella decided not to argue with me. She stopped dancing and looked me in the eye seriously.

"I love you Edward Anthony Masen Cullen," Bella said.

"As I love you Isabella Marie Cullen," I replied while beaming at my beautiful wife.

Bella reached up and put her hands in my hair, she pulled me down before kissing me passionately. It had really been a perfect day and I couldn't have been happier than I was right now.

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**A/N: **Well that was it, what'd you think? :D I might not be back tomorrow with another chapter, since I haven't technically written it… But I'll do my best and I'll upload as quickly as possible :) Xxx Thari


	13. Chapter 13: Burn It Up

**A/N:** Hi guys, I'm back. I'm so sorry it took me so long to write the next chapter, I had part of it finished pretty quickly already but then life got in the way, I had school stuff and got sick so I couldn't find the time to actually write. So please don't be mad *insert puppy dog eyes ;)* Anyways, thanks for all the sweet reviews **brittney**, **ravenlovestwilight**, **Shirley**, **Emma-MasenCullen**, **NutzforLUTZ** and **Lilly**. You guys are the best! :)

To brittney: I loved your review :D Great how you can say so much with so little words ;) Thanks for the sweet review! :)

To ravenlovestwilight: sorry I couldn't write quicker! But do hope you like what I've done with the wedding night :) Can't wait to hear what you think :)

To Shirley: I know From This Moment On is a bit corny and everything but I thought the lyrics fitted so well with our beloved couple and I always love that song so much :D Glad you agree it's perfect for a wedding ;) It would be quite horrific if Edward Cullen wouldn't be the perfect husband… :P How's this for taking my time though? Almost a week :P By the way… You have to come on MSN soon! New Vampire Diaries! :D Anyways… thanks for your awesome review as always! :D

To NutzforLUTZ: I just have to say, I love you screenname! :D It made me laugh :D Thanks for your review :) I'm glad you like my fluff :D (yes I know how wrong that sounds but you know what I mean ;):P)

To everyone: Well here's the new chapter, I hope you enjoy it. It's the wedding night, it might be a little out of character at times, but I hope you can stick with me through it. I just didn't want it to be the same as all other wedding nights so far so I decided to change it up a little bit. Can't wait to hear what you guys think! And if you don't like it, don't kill me ;) Just ignore this chapter :D

After this I will only have one more chapter after this one and then it's already over with this story. I hadn't expected this to be such a long story anyways :P Since it was based on **I've Had the Time Of My Life** and that was only 9 chapters but I guess I like writing from EPOV just a little more :D Always fun to be in a guy's head right? :D Anyways… I'm keeping you guys from the chapter and I'm sorry, I can imagine nobody's really excited about my rambling so I'll shut up now and let you read in peace ;) Hope you enjoy it and please let me know what you thought :) By the way, it's based on the song Burn It Up by R. Kelly, I chose it because it is kind of the song of my boyfriend en me, we always dance to this song together :D and I just love the song, it's a classic ;) Anyways… Thari, you're rambling… SHUT UP! Right… Sorry :D I'll be quiet ;) Enjoy ;)

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**Burn It Up**

The wedding had been perfect, I wouldn't have changed a thing if I could and from the content expression on Bella's face, she felt exactly the same way. We were currently in the back of Carlisle's Mercedes, Carlisle and Esme were dropping us off at the airport.

"I can't believe you don't even know where we're going!" Bella exclaimed when we were almost at the airport.

Carlisle and Esme chuckled, they weren't even sure where we were going, another gift from Alice. She had made sure that the entire honeymoon would also be a surprise to the both of us. She had told the least number of people possible about her plan for a greater chance at success and unfortunately for me, Alice hadn't even slipped once, she had been very careful not to think of our honeymoon around me. She knows I hate surprises yet she keeps insisting on surprising me, the evil little pixie.

"That's Alice for you," I replied with a shrug.

"Doesn't it drive you crazy not to know?" she asked incredulously.

"Sure, love, you know how much I hate surprises, I'm lucky the only two people who are able to pull it off are you and Alice. But I trust the both of you completely, that's why I know that this will be perfectly planned, Alice wouldn't have it any other way. So just relax and we'll know where we're going soon enough I'm sure," I tried to assure Bella.

"Right," she just muttered before snuggling into my side again.

"She's just as stubborn as you are Edward," Carlisle remarked with a smile.

"Maybe even more so," I replied jokingly.

"Hey!" Bella said mock offended.

"Now now Edward," Esme said reprimanding. "We all know _nobody_ is as stubborn as you are." She added triumphantly.

"Thanks mom," I muttered.

We arrived at the airport not much later and it was time to hug my parents goodbye.

"Have a wonderful time on your honeymoon and come home safe!" Esme said lovingly.

"Enjoy yourselves," Carlisle added in goodbye.

_Edward, I know you might still be a little worried but remember what I've told you before, if anyone can do it, it's you, just relax, trust yourself, trust Bella and just enjoy yourself alright? _Carlisle's thoughts reached me.

I just nodded in understanding and smiled at my father gratefully.

"Bye!" Bella and I waved my parents goodbye before walking towards the gates.

"Mr. and Mrs. Cullen?" an unfamiliar voice came from behind us.

We turned around and found a tiny man in a neat suit standing behind us uncertainly.

"Can we help you?" I asked politely.

"Oh it is you, I'm so relieved! I'm Jack, your sister told me to wait for you here, we've already arranged your check-in, all we need now are your bags and you are good to go. Your sister said your destination was supposed to be a surprise, I'm not even sure where you're going," the man apparently named Jack said a little embarrassed.

"This is going overboard!" Bella exclaimed but couldn't help but chuckle at Alice's thoroughness.

"That's Alice," I said again shrugging.

"Thank you Jack, I'm Edward, this is my wife Bella, it's nice to meet you," I told Jack sincerely.

"The pleasure is all mine," Jack replied. "Why don't you let me take care of your bags so you can go your own way, I will come pick you up from the V.I.P. lounge in an hour alright?" he proposed.

"That would be great, thank you," I replied kindly.

"So what do you want to do the coming hour?" I asked Bella once we'd handed our bags over to Jack.

"I don't know," she replied shyly.

"Well, are you hungry?" I asked.

"A little, how about you?" she responded jokingly.

"Very funny," I replied before kissing my bride lovingly.

The hour passed by quickly and before I knew it we were meeting Jack in the lounge. He informed us that we had quite some travelling to do before we reached our destination, even though he didn't know our final destination, that much he did know. He showed us to our gate and made sure we got on the plane alright.

Alice had arranged a private place on the plane for Bella and me and I was grateful for that, flying with other people had never been one of my favorite things, it was just a little too crowded for my taste.

Jack hadn't been lying when he told us we had quite a long day of travelling ahead of us. We changed flights twice and had to take a boat before we finally arrived at Crete, where we would apparently spend the first week of our honeymoon.

Upon our arrival Alice informed me that the sun would be shining the entire time we were going to be there, so going out in public together was out of the question but she had rented a villa for us near a deserted beach so we could enjoy all the privacy in the world.

Our honeymoon was going to take three weeks, after that we would have one more week to get settled in Seattle before our semester began. Alice had planned our entire trip into detail and all she was willing to give me now was the first week on Crete, which was just going to be the two of us enjoying each other's company.

"We're here love," I woke Bella up when I pulled our rental car into the driveway of our villa.

I quickly unloaded all the luggage out of the car and made sure everything was settled in the house, I lit some candles and noticed Alice had already taken care of the rest, the ambiance was perfect for our wedding night. I hurried back to the car, where Bella was waiting for me, still not entirely awake. She looked adorable and I quickly made my way over to her and kissed her lips.

She smiled at my enthusiasm but then her expression quickly changed and I couldn't quite put my finger on the expression she was wearing now. What I wouldn't give to have a look into her mind right now. Was she having second thoughts?

"Are you alright love?" I asked worriedly.

"Yes," she replied before blushing heavily.

"What's on your mind? It pains me not to know."

"Well… I'm… I'm just a little nervous," she admitted softly.

"I won't hurt you Bella, I promise," I vowed.

"I know you won't, I'm just scared that I'm…" she trailed off.

"That you're what love? Please tell me," I begged.

"That I'm no good," she muttered ashamed while turning her face away from me.

I chuckled softly before lifting her face back to mine and kissing her lovingly. "You're afraid of disappointing me?" I asked kindly.

"Yes," she replied.

"Please don't worry about that love, I love you more than anything in this world, if anyone should be scared it's me," I admitted. "But if you're having second thoughts we can just hold off," I continued.

"No!" she said too quickly and I couldn't help but laugh at the shock on her face.

"Alright, we'll try, no promises though," I reminded her again before lifting her from the car and carrying her into our villa.

"You know you're only supposed to carry me over the threshold of our own house right?" Bella asked laughingly.

"I'm nothing if not thorough," I replied with a wink.

"Right," Bella said still smiling.

"Welcome to our home for the week Mrs. Cullen," I said before kissing my love passionately.

"Hmm, that will never get old," she sighed.

"I sure hope not!" I responded jokingly. "Why don't I give you a few minutes to freshen up?" I suggested.

"Thank you," Bella said softly before making her way to the bathroom.

It wasn't long before I heard Bella in the bedroom, she was putting a CD in the stereo.

"You can come in if you want," Bella whispered, her voice shook slightly.

"Are you sure about this?" I asked, telling myself this would be the last time I would ask Bella.

"More than sure," she said confidently and a knot formed in my stomach from my own nervousness.

"If I'm doing anything wrong or if I'm hurting you, you have to promise me you'll tell me right away alright?" I told Bella.

"Only if you do the same," she replied.

I chuckled and she joined in briefly.

"Alright then," I said before making my way over to Bella and kissing her passionately.

"Wait," she muttered in my mouth.

I pulled away and looked at her in confusion. Was she having second thoughts?

"I'm not having second thoughts Edward, I told you, I'm sure!"

"Alright," I said cautiously.

"There's just something Alice and Rosalie told me, or rather taught me," she said while blushing heavily.

I was getting slightly anxious, what had my sisters done this time.

"They said you would probably like it," she continued.

"What is it love?" I asked curiously now.

"I can't tell you, why don't I just show you?" she said seductively but I could tell from her blush that she was nervous.

She guided me to the bed and made me sit down. I waited for her to make the next move but she just stood there for a second, looking unsure.

"Please don't laugh," she said insecurely.

"Trust me love, I won't!" I promised her. My curiosity was burning inside me, I couldn't imagine what on Earth my sisters would have told her that would make her insecure and shy like she was right now. I had married this woman today for crying out loud, didn't that show her how much I loved and adored everything about her?

"Alright then," she muttered, more to herself than to me.

She turned around, walked towards the CD player and pressed play. To my surprise I recognized the song that started playing immediately. 'One of R. Kelly's better tracks' Emmett had called it and I had heard Rose and him play it quite often.

Bella turned around to face me after a moment of what seemed to be calming herself. I looked at her expectantly and she just blushed. She was fixating her gaze on me though, I could see the urge to look at the floor in her eyes but she was fighting it with all she had it seemed.

Then she started swaying to the music and my eyes practically popped out of their sockets in my shock and admiration. She was moving sensually. I could tell she had to focus on what she was doing, she was moving carefully at first, just swaying her hips from side to side but it wasn't long before she started towards me and came to stand in front of me, still swaying her hips to the music.

The sight of her this way drove me crazy, she was so beautiful and I was scared I wasn't going to be able to control myself if she kept this up.

_Well I say girl  
Back that thing up to me_

_Closer _

Bella actually smiled at the lyrics of the song and she took a step closer to me, she kept it so that we were not quite touching yet but I could feel the heat from her body close to mine and I wanted nothing more than to scoop her into my arms and kiss her senseless. But I would have to be patient.

Bella started to slowly remove her dress, slowly unzipping the back and gracefully letting it fall to the floor. My jaw literally dropped when I noticed the black set of lingerie she was wearing under her dress. It was simple, black bra and black panties but it looked extremely sexy on her.

_Burn it up  
Girl make it hot like the roof in on fire_

R. Kelly sang and I couldn't control myself any longer. I reached out and grabbed Bella, I carefully but forcefully placed her in my lap and started trailing kisses all along her neck.

"You are so sexy," I whispered softly in between the kisses.

I could feel her smile and I looked up to take in the beautiful view. She beamed at me, all her insecurity seemed to have faded away and she gently pushed me back so I was laying on the bed, I willingly complied. I let her take the lead as she removed my shirt and started placing kisses along my chest. It felt marvelous to be with her this way, the fight for my control wasn't as hard as I had expected, I knew Bella was breakable and I wanted nothing more than to make love to her gently all night long.

And so we did.

I had never felt better than I did right now, laying on the bed with my beautiful love, contently sleeping, in my arms. She was very peaceful, she didn't stir and hardly spoke, only every now and then she sighed my name happily and the feeling of happiness I had had the entire day and night washed over me full force again every time. It was exquisite.

It wasn't until noon that my love woke up.

"Good morning love," I said lovingly.

She just sighed softly and hugged herself closer to me.

"I'm afraid to open my eyes," she murmured in my chest.

"Why? Are you alright? Do you regret last night?" I asked worried. The fear that last night hadn't been a good experience for her at all washed over me, crushing every bit of happiness I had felt previously.

"Are you kidding? I've never been better! I'm just afraid that when I open my eyes I'll realize it had all just been a dream and I don't want that!" she said, as if that should have been obvious.

My entire body relaxed at her words. I just hugged her even closer and kissed the top of her head lovingly.

"It wasn't a dream love," I promised her.

She slowly opened her eyes and looked at me with a look of love more deep than I had ever seen in her eyes before, it almost hurt.

"I love you," she whispered softly before kissing my lips.

"As I love you," I replied.

"But do _you_ regret last night?" she asked insecurely. "I can understand that, I mean you have to hold back obviously, that can't be fun for you, I'm sorry I must have been such a disappointment," she babbled nervously and for a second I could only stare at my true love.

I sat up straight and placed her across my lap. I cupped her face with my hands and forced her to look into my eyes. "Bella, last night was probably the best night in my entire existence. No not probably, definitely." Bella relaxed immediately. "How could you think otherwise? I didn't once feel like I had to hold back or anything, I enjoyed every minute of it immensely, I never thought it could be this way. I've had the entire time you were sleeping to get over the feeling of pure bliss but I never got over it, I'm still the happiest man on this planet and the fact that you love me so much that you would actually worry about it all just makes it all the more perfect. I love you Bella Cullen." Calling her that would never get old. "And you definitely have nothing to be sorry about when it comes to last night. My brothers told me that particular experience was second only to drinking human blood but I'm afraid I have to disagree, I've tasted human blood and this was a thousand times better than any human blood I've ever had! Please listen to me when I say there is nothing you could do to disappoint me in any way! You are perfect Bella, when are you going to realize that?" I asked her sweetly.

"Oh," she muttered. "So you did enjoy last night?" she asked softly, trying to wrap her head around all that had happened and all I had said it seemed.

"Come here silly girl, it was perfect," I said before kissing Bella on the lips passionately. "At least it was for me," I added cautiously.

"Now who's being silly? I have never experienced anything greater than last night!" she said quickly and we both laughed.

"I'm glad," I said softly.

"In fact," Bella started suggestively. "I loved it so much I wouldn't mind repeating that particular experience," she said while blushing slightly.

I growled in anticipation before I pulled Bella on top of me and started kissing her with more fire and passion than we had ever kissed before. _Burn it up_ indeed I thought with a smile.

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**A/N: **That was it for the wedding night, I hope you enjoyed it. I'll be back as soon as I can with the last chapter, depending on whether or not my life gets in the way I hope it'll be this week ;) Xxx Thari


	14. Chapter 14: Just the Way You Are

**A/N: **Well, it's taken me longer yet again to write the next chapter, please don't be mad but school's crazy so I'm trying my best to make it all work, this was the best I could do *insert puppy dog eyes. As always my thanks goes out to all of you who bother to read this story and to add me to your favorites. And to those who leave me those awesome reviews, **Raven's twimom**, **Lulutbo** and **Shirley**. You guys rock!

To Raven's twimom: Thank you so much for your sweet words :) I'm glad you're still enjoying my story.

To Lulutbo: I'm glad you like my story :) I'm also kind of sad to see it come to an end but there's always another story ;)

To Shirley: Did we already discuss last Thursday's VD? I forgot… :$ Yeah I don't know what happened somewhere between the 11th and the 13th it turned out to work better in 14 chapters :P But this really is the final one :P I'm happy my rambling is contagious cause I love reading your rambles :P I'm glad you liked Bella's striptease :D Well at least I didn't rush :D Hope you're happy with what I did with this chapter ;) Awesome! Queen of Awesomeville! I'll wear my crown with pride! Thanks sooooo much! You're pretty awesome yourself! Wanna be queen with me? :D

To everyone: Well, here's the last chapter of this story, I'm sad to see it end but I hope you guys liked it all the same. Just let me know what you think, it always makes my day to read your thoughts!

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**Just the Way You Are**

_Five years later_

I couldn't believe it was our fifth wedding anniversary already. Time had gone by so fast. We were going to celebrate our anniversary tonight. We had already recreated our entire honeymoon last year, first the week in Crete just enjoying each other's company and being in love like we have been the entire time since we first met and then the two weeks of traveling all over Europe that Alice had arranged for us for our honeymoon the first time, visiting some of the world's most romantic sites like Rome and Paris. It had been amazing. The weather had thankfully been the same as it had been our first time there so both Bella and I could walk around freely.

A lot had happened in the past five years. We had moved to our home in Seattle, it had been a small house, Bella hadn't wanted it any other way although she knew I could afford it, and we had been perfectly happy going to school together every day and coming home together. It had been so much better than I had imagined it would be and I was grateful for every moment I had with my wife.

After we had both finished college, Bella decided she had been human for long enough now and she had convinced me, after arguing heavily for a few weeks, to change her. I hadn't been happy about the entire thing but she had made up her mind and as she told me 'there was no point in delaying the inevitable, it would only make matters worse'. Strangely enough Rosalie had actually been her strongest ally in this fight. Rosalie, who wouldn't have wished this existence onto her worst enemies, had actually helped Bella come up with ways to convince me, some of the crueler ones actually involving withholding sex and trying to convince me how much more perfect making love would be when we would be 'equals' in her words.

Bella had pleaded with me for days at a time, refusing to talk about anything else and even though I could see that it was hurting her, she knew what she wanted and she made my life hell until I gave it to her. I couldn't stand the look of disappointment on her face any longer so I gave in at a certain point. She had already finished her education and she had told me there wasn't any other 'human experience' she needed to be human for now, she argued she could work when she was a vampire as well.

It was remarkable to see the restraint she had shown when she had been a newborn, not one slip up, no human blood in her system and hardly any temper tantrums or mood changes, she was truly divine in every way. It were her perfect self-control and her unconditional love that had allowed her to even maintain a relationship with both her parents. Her father rather not know anything about what had happened, he was just happy that Bella was happy and he was willing to overlook all the changes if it meant keeping his daughter in his life. Her mother had been a different case altogether. Bella had already told me she was insightful and that her mind didn't quite work the same as anyone else's but she had insisted on knowing everything there was to know about what had happened to Bella, Bella and Renée had no secrets and their relationship had never been tighter.

"What are you smiling at?" Bella asked lovingly, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Just thinking about your first year as a vampire," I told her sheepishly.

"Quite an eventful year that was," she remarked jokingly.

"Actually I was marveling over how well you handled everything back there, you're an amazing woman Bella and I'm happy to have you as my wife," I said sincerely.

"I'm the lucky one," she replied lovingly.

"Ah, even with vampire vision, you still don't see me clearly," I responded with a smile.

Bella just laughed and kissed me sweetly. It wasn't long before the kiss turned into a passionate one and I was getting ready to make a run for the bedroom with Bella in my arms. But Bella wasn't having that.

"Not now love, not yet," she murmured.

"Why not?" I demanded with a pout.

"Because we're first going to celebrate our anniversary like you planned," she said evilly.

"I've rethought my plans and I've thought of a better one," I replied suggestively.

"Be patient Edward, we have all night for that," she promised, saying the one thing that would be able to convince me.

"Well alright then, I guess we should get ready for our date then," I said still pouting slightly.

Bella left our cottage to meet Alice in the main house.

After we had finished college, Bella had suggested we go live with my family again in Forks. My mother had been thrilled at the prospect of the remaining two of her children coming home again and she had understood that we would want some privacy away from them as well so she had built us a cottage not far from the house as a welcome home present. It was perfect and although Seattle had been our first house together, this was really our home.

I had initially planned on taking Bella to New York for a couple of days to relive the week of our engagement but Alice had told me that it was going to be completely sunny the entire time so there was no way we would be able to go outside during the day. I wanted to do something special for our anniversary but then I realized what mattered most to Bella was time alone with me. And that was exactly what tonight was going to be about. I was going to take Bella to our meadow. Ever since Bella had come into my life I had thought of the meadow as ours. I vividly remembered the first time I brought her there.

_We were in Forks for a weekend with our family and the weather was beautiful, it was sunny and warm, a rare occurrence in Forks. _

"_Would you mind going somewhere just the two of us today?" I asked Bella, knowing the answer already._

"_I would love to!" she replied enthusiastically. _

_We made our way to the meadow, walking the last bit through the woods slowly. I knew Bella was a bit nervous about walking these treacherous paths so I had offered to carry her. She declined smilingly but held onto my hand like her life depended on it all the same. _

_The first few steps into our meadow were precious. Bella was looking around completely awestruck. Then she turned to me, scraped her throat and blushed heavily while fumbling with her hair nervously. _

"_I have something to confess," she started nervously and I was instantly worried. _

"_I think I fell in love," she continued cautiously following with a short pause to take in my response. It felt like my world shattered. Of course I wouldn't deny her happiness in any case but the idea of her with someone else killed me. _

"_Oh," was all I could say. _

_Then she broke down into a breathtaking smile and continued "with this meadow." I glared at her for putting me through that but smiled quickly after. _

"_Did you really think you were going to lose me that easily?" she said mock angrily. _

"_You are human after all," I replied, still a little taken aback. _

_She had actually turned a little mad at me, telling me that she was never going to love anyone else and that I should start trusting her or she would have to take desperate measures. I wasn't willing enough to find out what those measures were going to be so I scooped her into my arms and we spent the rest of the day cuddling and kissing and enjoying each other in the meadow. _

I smiled at the memory. I knew better now, I wasn't afraid that Bella was going to find someone else who was better for her than I was anymore. I knew the depth of her love and the fact that her humanity wasn't standing between us anymore, and with that the fact that I wasn't good for her, had actually helped with this realization.

I made my way to the main house after I had changed into my 'neat clothes', the same clothes I had worn when I had proposed to Bella. Not long after I had entered the house Alice theatrically made her way down the stairs.

"I now present you, Mrs. Bella Cullen," she said while motioning towards the top of the stairs.

There was my love, in a beautiful red dress that set off incredibly against her pale skin. It made her look like a vampire in some way but more sexy than anything I had ever seen her in outside of the bedroom at the same time.

"You look amazing," I said appreciatively while taking my love's hand.

"Thank you, you're not so bad yourself," Bella replied lovingly.

"Well, you kids have fun, don't stay out too late," Emmett said jokingly while we made our way to the door.

"Have fun!" the rest of my family called after us, some with more innuendo, Jasper and Carlisle, than others.

"So where are we going?" Bella asked when we were in my car.

"You'll see soon enough," I replied with a smile.

The drive to the meadow wasn't long and it didn't take Bella long to figure out where we were going.

"You're taking me to the meadow?" she asked and I could tell she was excited.

"Yes I am," I replied.

"I love it there," she sighed happily.

"I remember," I told her with a mock glare.

"Sorry about that, but you really should have known better," Bella shrugged while throwing me an innocent look.

We walked into the meadow and it was just twilight. I had laid down a blanket for us to sit on with a vase filled with flowers, a candle and a wine bottle.

"I was hoping to have a picnic with you actually but since neither of us eat anymore these days, this was all I could do," I said with a smile.

"It's beautiful but why the wine bottle? Are you going to tell me that vampires do drink alcohol?" she said while raising one eyebrow at me comically.

"No silly, trust me, Emmett, Jasper and I tried once but that didn't really go over so well," I said with a smile. "But I wanted to pretend anyways, so I prepared this bottle for us, well actually I prepared a couple of bottles," I said, a little self-conscious now.

Bella took a deep breath and I could see her eyes darken slightly. "You filled it with mountain lion?" she asked surprised.

"Yep," I said with a smile.

Bella's breathtaking smile was all I needed to know she appreciated the effort. We sat down on the blanket and I opened our bottle and poured two glasses.

"This is amazing Edward," Bella said softly after sipping her 'wine'.

"I'm glad you like it love," I replied happily.

We sat there, enjoying each others' company in silence, for a while. Then Bella seemed to remember something and she shot up.

"I'll be right back," she said quickly. "Don't move!" she ordered.

"Yes ma'am," I replied while becoming completely still.

Bella ran off and before I knew it she was back with something in her hands.

"I have something for you, my dad recently gave it to me, I had forgotten about it completely and he said he came across it while cleaning out my old room," she explained while handing me the package. "I wanted to give it to you sooner but I kept waiting for the right moment and now this seems to be it," she said with a smile.

I opened the present and pulled out a small black notebook. I curiously flipped through the pages and noticed it was something written in Bella's handwriting.

"I know how much you hated not being able to be inside my head through the months we were apart and I happened to have kept a diary, I have it pretty much memorized and I remember most things about my human life pretty vividly," she started with a smile. "At least the things that actually matter, so from when I met you onwards." I shook my head, still not grasping why an amazing girl like Bella would have been interested in me but happy she had been. "So I figured you should have it, so we have no secrets and you can feel, at least for a little while, like you're actually in my head," she finished and I was extremely touched by the gesture.

"You're amazing! Are you sure it's okay for me to read it?" I asked to be certain.

"Are you kidding? I don't have anything to hide, it's not like you hadn't noticed how crazy I have been about you from the start right?" she added jokingly.

I quickly scooped my wife into my arms and spun her around while covering her in kisses.

"You're too much, you know that?" I asked lovingly.

She just kissed me back and hugged me tighter.

"I love you," she whispered in my ear and I couldn't believe how much our close contact still effected me every single time.

"As I love you," I replied. "But now that we're exchanging gifts anyways, I have something for you as well," I told Bella excitedly. I could tell from the expression on her face that she wasn't happy, even after 5 years of marriage, she still had trouble accepting gifts from me.

"I don't like it when you spend so much of your money on me," she said immediately.

"It's your money too love," I told her for the umpteenth time.

"In that case," she started with a sudden flash of insight in her eyes. I always loved it when I could see her cook up something in her mind, it meant something interesting was going to follow. "I don't like it when you spend so much of _our_," she said while rolling her eyes, "money on unnecessary things while others could use it so much better. If it truly is _our_ money like you say, than I should have a say in the matter right?" she challenged and I smiled at my beautiful bride.

"You are absolutely right, but normally your say isn't rational," I said jokingly. "But if you're really set on this, I guess I'll discuss the finances with you before acting from now on, as long as you promise to be a little bit more reasonable, if you want I can show you how much money we really have," I offered.

"No!" she exclaimed horrified. "I don't want to know, ever! But why don't we make a deal, I won't bother you about money anymore and you can spend it as you please, _as long as_ you give away an equal amount of money to a charity every time you spend something," she said.

"That sounds reasonable," I replied, proud that Bella cared so much about things like charity and other people's wellbeing, she was truly remarkable in every sense! "But for now, I didn't spend any money on the present, well alright I may have spent 3$ on it or something but I swear I didn't spend anything more!" I promised.

"Alright, I guess I can accept that then," she said, enthusiastic as ever.

"I'm glad you're so excited," I said while rolling my eyes at my love.

I retrieved the gift I had made for Bella earlier and handed it to her. She opened it quickly and from the look on her face she was actually surprised.

"What's this?" she asked curiously.

"It's a CD of our relationship," I explained. "The little book inside the CD case explains what I was feeling or thinking with that particular song and what part of our relationship it reminds me of."

Bella opened the case and took out the book carefully. She started reading out loud.

"Number one, Daniel Beddingfield, 'If You're Not the One'," she read.

"That's the song I had in my head from the moment I had first met you," I continued for her.

"It's such a sweet and beautiful song," she said, clearly touched. "Number two, 'Airplanes' by B.o.B.," she continued and raised her eyebrow at me in question.

"That's Emmett's fault really, he used to listen to that song. But I was quite miserable when you weren't with me and I knew we couldn't technically be together and a wish seemed to be appropriate at that time," I explained.

"Ah," she said before continuing on. "Number three, 'I Wanna Be Close To You' by Avant."

"The title says it all," I said with a smile.

"Number four, 'No You Hang Up', I think I can figure this one out, I loved our daily phonecalls, they were the highlight of my day," she said smilingly and I just kissed her in return.

"That song also reminds me of when I told you about what I am."

"I hated that we didn't speak for so long afterwards, I didn't care about your secret! I loved you!" she said sternly.

"I know love, it wasn't smart of you but you have no idea how thankful I am for that every single day," I told her with a smile.

"Song number five, 'Far Away', our Nickelback concert! I had such an amazing time then!" she said enthusiastically.

"Me too love, I was so happy you were so glad to see me," I said sincerely.

"Of course I was! I was madly in love with you! Still am for that matter!" she exclaimed. "Number six, 'Right Here, Right Now', High School Musical, my best human Christmas!"

"I'm so thankful you love my family the way you do," I told her seriously.

"What's not to love?" she asked with a smile. "They're all amazing and they have treated me like one of their own from the start even though I was clearly not, I love every single one of them!"

"I know."

"Number seven, 'Joy Of My Life'? That John Fogerty song?" she asked.

"Yes, you surprised me with that visit, it was extremely sweet and touching and it felt so great to come home to you," I explained.

"It was nice to wake up next to you." She sighed. "Sometimes I miss sleeping, just so I could wake up next to you, but being awake with you 24/7 still is so much better, it's better than my wildest dreams!" she told me a little embarrassed.

"I still feel like I'm dreaming when I'm with you all the time," I replied.

"Song eight, this is quite a long list!" she said surprised.

"We've been through a lot," I answered with a shrug.

"'Nothing On You' by B.o.B.," she continued to read.

"You still wasn't convinced you were the only girl for me," I told her with a smile.

"And still that fact is puzzling to me," she admitted.

"Unbelievable." I rolled my eyes at her adoringly.

"Number nine, 'To Love A Woman', ah, your performance, I was so shocked to see you break out of your careful protection for a change and really let go, it was extremely nice to see it," she said sweetly.

"I'm just happy you didn't run away screaming," I replied jokingly.

"You wouldn't be able to get rid of me that easily," she teased.

"I wouldn't dream of it love," I continued seriously.

"I know. Number ten, 'Bleeding Love', that's such a pretty song, I love it!" she said appreciatively.

"The song reminds me of our proposal," I explained.

"I still can't believe you did all that! It was the perfect proposal!"

"That's what I was going for, you deserve it love," I said smilingly.

"I love you so much!" she said suddenly before throwing herself into my arms and kissing me passionately.

I could feel my eyes turn darker instantly and hers were mirroring my feelings but she got herself under control quickly.

"Not yet," she said while kissing me softly once more.

"Not fair!" I pouted.

"Number eleven," she continued, ignoring me. "'Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting'?"

"Uhm, Emmett was being his usual self at my bachelor party, Carlisle reminded us of this song," I admitted a little uncomfortably.

"Boys will be boys," Bella said while rolling her eyes at me adorably. "Number twelve, 'From This Moment On', our wedding song, that's my strongest memory of our time together while I was still human, my favorite memory," she explained lovingly.

"Our wedding was perfect," I agreed.

"Then again, maybe this is my favorite," she said smilingly while continuing on with the list. "Number thirteen, 'Burn It Up', I still can't believe Rose and Alice actually talked me into doing that! I felt so uncomfortable," she exclaimed still horrified.

"You were so incredibly sexy Bella, Adorable and sexy at the same time, you should never be ashamed of anything, especially not around me! I was so happy you did that for me, I knew how hard it was for you and I have to say you did it perfectly!" I said enthusiastically.

"Thanks," Bella muttered and I knew she would be blushing had she still been human. "Last but not least, number fourteen, 'Just the Way You Are', by Bruno Mars. What does that remind you of?" she asked curiously.

"Just this, you really, have you heard it before?" I asked.

"I don't think I have," she admitted.

I pulled out the small CD player I had taken with me so she could listen to the song and the moment she heard the lyrics she started to smile at me while rolling her eyes.

_Oh her eyes, her eyes  
Make the stars look like they're not shining  
Her hair, her hair  
Falls perfectly without her trying_

"You still don't see me clearly," she said while shaking her head.

"Exactly my point of this song!" I explained while we listened to the rest of the song.

_Yeah I know, I know  
When I compliment her  
She won't believe me  
And it's so, it's so  
Sad to think she don't see what I see_

I threw Bella a meaningful look and she just stuck out her tongue in return but I could tell she was touched by the song.

_But every time she asks me do I look okay  
I say  
When I see your face  
There's not a thing that I would change  
Cause you're amazing  
Just the way you are  
And when you smile  
The whole world stops and stares for a while  
Cause girl you're amazing  
_

"Just the way you are!" I finished the sentence.

"I love your gift Edward, it's the sweetest thing you could have given me!" she said softly before kissing me again.

This time I wasn't going to let her get away with it that easily. I pulled her on top of me as I lay in the grass and started kissing her with as much fire as I had been feeling for her from the beginning. I was the luckiest man in the world for being allowed to kiss her and be with her in this way, she was simply perfection and there was nothing in the world that could compare to this.

* * *

**A/N:** Well that's the end of this story. I hope you enjoyed it. I sure loved writing it, although it took me all a little longer than I had expected I don't know when I'll have the time to write another story, I hope soon but my life is a bit crazy with school and everything right now so no promises! :D I have some ideas for One Shots that I might be able to put into a story soon and I have two half finished stories aside from that so if I have inspiration it might be that I'll be done sometime soon but we'll see how it goes ;) Otherwise there's always my 6 week long Christmas break to work on a new story ;)

Thank you so much for sticking with me through this story, you guys are all amazing! I love hearing your thoughts and comments! So if you have some time leave a review and let me know what you thought

Until next time!  
Xxx  
Thari


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